Sunrise
by uprisingdragon
Summary: NEW DESCRIPTION; Fairy Tail has changed a lot over the years, but some things seem to stay the same. Nashi Dragneel and Winter Fullbuster fight as often as their parents before them, Tanith Redfox is an avid reader, and Simon Fernandez has a knack for requiping. Still, not everything is as perfect as it seems, and soon, the second generation of Fairy Tail will be faced with danger.
1. Chapter 1

Sunrise

Nashi Dragneel drearily blinked awake, groaning loudly when she saw the cause of her early rise; Igleia. Her 13 year old sister was sitting on her bed, murmuring the spells that Freed spent the previous day teaching her. If Nashi was normal, she would've ignored the young blonde and returned to dreaming about food, dragons, and cute boys. Unfortunately, her 4th generation dragon slayer magic made her ears pick up practically everything. Although it was incredibly fun to use when spying on her siblings, it made her an extremely light sleeper. It didn't help Igleia chose Rune magic as her own and would pull several all-nighters trying to improve her skill.

The pink haired 17 year old picked up one of her pillows and chucked it at her little sister's head," Go to bed!"

Igleia barely glanced up from her book, even after the cushion smacked into her cheek and tousled her hair. She was used to her older sister's behavior by then, and she figured that the method of getting her to shut up could've been something much worse than a pillow to the head," I'm being quiet."

"No you're not; I can hear you."

"You can hear everything."

Nashi groaned and tried to bury her head back into her nest of blankets," Stop talking all night, then."

"Get ear plugs," She retorted. A sly smile crossed her face when she realized her sister's sudden grouchiness," Oh, did I interrupt one of your boyfriend dreams again?"

Nashi blushed deep red," N-No...yes. Don't tell anyone!"

No matter how annoying Igleia could be, she followed her mom's promise system and proved herself to be incredibly honest and reliable," Don't worry, I won't. Why don't you try go back to sleep? I can mouth the words from now on."

"I can't; once I wake up, I can't fall back asleep," The brown eyed girl sighed and hugged her favorite plush," What time is it anyways?"

"Uh...4:30….Don't kill me!"

It was only then that Nashi dropped the sleepy attitude, let out a battle cry, and tackled the younger girl," YOU MADE ME WAKE UP EARLY ON A WEEKEND?!"

"AHHHH! MOM! DAD! HELP! LEO! I'M BEING ATTACKED!"

"SHUT UP AND TAKE IT LIKE A REAL WIZARD!"

The girl's door burst open, revealing their 16 year old brother, Leo. The blonde haired boy glanced between the two sisters before grinning wildly and jumping on top of them, his adventurous attitude coming out," Yay, a fight!"

"STAY OUT OF THIS, CELESTIAL PANSY!"

It only took five minutes for Natsu and Lucy kick the door open with wild looks of panic on their faces. Nashi froze, one hand holding Igleia's ponytail, the other blocking Leo's fist. She smiled sheepishly before climbing off of her siblings and straightening her exceed pajama pants," Mom...Dad...Hi."

Lucy groaned," Does this have to happen every morning?!"

"But mom, Igleia was reading too loud-"

"No I was not! I was whispering!"

"I can hear whispering, dimwit!"

"Nashi called me a celestial pansy! Everyone knows the celestial mages are the coolest and manliest-no offense, mom."

The blonde woman sent her husband a desperate look, only to see that he had fallen asleep against the doorframe. Lucy ran through all of her options before deciding that since they did this at least once a week, there was no way a punishment could make them stop. She sighed and rubbed her temples, questioning why on earth she had decided to have children," Eugh, fine. I'm gonna make breakfast."

The three children exchanged shocked stares, gaping at the sudden change of mood. Usually their mom would threaten them until their ears bled, trying over and over again to explain the fighting was not the solution to every single problem. Igleia, who had recovered from the statement faster than her siblings, spoke up first," So we're...not in trouble?"

Their mom simply shrugged," I've given up; just be more quiet next time, Kay? Come on, Natsu, I'm not carrying you again."

Leo's shoulders slumped in relief as the two left," Thank god-hey," The blonde stood up and wandered over to Nashi's bed, digging the pinkette's discarded plush out from underneath the covers," Hold on, is this W-"

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU IF YOU DON'T PUT THAT DOWN!"

"Ooh, another fight! Alright, let's go big sis!"

"MOM! THEY'RE FIGHTING AGAIN-AHHHH! MY BOOK! DISTINGUISH YOUR FIST, NASHI, BEFORE YOU SET MY BELOVED-"

"SHUT UP, RUNE-PRUNE!"

"OH, THAT'S IT! YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"

Lucy rolled her eyes and opened the fridge, mentally wondering if Levy to go through this every morning.

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Tanith Redfox was one of those late night readers. You know, the type that would fall asleep with a book on their nose and a trail of drool on the pages.

Oddly enough, she woke up that morning without that familiar feeling of paper tickling her ears. The dark haired girl yawned gently and pushed herself up, only to find her older brother, Cobalt, reading it with wide eyes," Oh. My. God."

Tanith squinted drearily, pulling out her glasses to try and focus on her sibling," What? Haven't 'cha read a book before?"

"Not this kind of book."

She blinked a few times before turning a deep shade of red," Oh god! Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god!" The crimson eyed girl snatched it away from his hands and hid it behind her back," W-why did you take my book?"

"Why are you reading porn?!"

"It's not porn..." She murmured in defense, rubbing her arm sheepishly," There are just some...heated scenes in it."

Cobalt snorted," Yeah, right. You know, I got to chapter 5, and there was-"

"You got to chapter 5? I'm only on chapter 3...," She giggled playfully," You're a pervert too!"

"No I'm not! Shut up, Pee-wee."

"Don't call me Pee-wee, or I'll tell dad that-"

"Tell me what?" A gravelly voice interrupted, causing Tanith to scream and Cobalt to pee a little.

The navy blue haired boy shuddered and rubbed the back of his head," H-hi dad...what are you doing up so early?"

"I heard the word porn," Gajeel replied darkly. Just when it seemed that he would lock them both in a dark closer until they were 50, he patted his son on the back," Good job, kid!"

Cobalt choked," W-what?"

"Dad!" His daughter whined," Don't say stuff like that."

"I agree," Levy growled, stepping out from behind Gajeel," Don't encourage Coba-" She paused, her eyes falling on the book behind her daughter's back,"-Is that my book?"

Tanith furiously shook her head no," N-No, Auntie Juvia lent it to me and I didn't know that it was-" She gasped and covered her mouth, automatically knowing that her secret was out.

Suddenly, all of the dots connected in the parent's head; Levy paled before fainting while Gajeel snatched the book out of her hands and glared at it," You're not allowed to look at porn!"

"It's not porn! It's romantic. Anyways, I can't look at it! There's no pictures or anything, I swear!"

"It is very descriptive, though-"

"Cobalt, shut up!"

The dark haired man waved the heated book around in the air, sending a pointed glare at his children," You're not allowed to borrow books from Juvia anymore, got it?" They both mumbled their apologies and went to tend to their mother, leaving Gajeel with one option left," I'm gonna return this."

Just as he turned to leave, something occurred to Tanith," Hold up, Cobalt, what the hell were you doing in my room at 4:45 in the morning?!"

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Simon Fernandez scratched his scarlet hair sheepishly," Uh...sorry?"

His mom gave him a glare that could scare Zeref himself," You're way past your curfew young man."

"Mom, you know where I was-"

"Were you besmirching her personal space?" Erza growled.

Her son frowned and shook his head no," Mom, you know I'm better than that. I would never violate Geona like that. We just talked, that's all."

The red headed woman narrowed her eyes at her son before waving her hand," Fine. Go upstairs and get some sleep. Next time you're going to be late, call. If you don't, I'll find you and ground you. Got it?"

He leaned over and kissed her forehead," Of course I do, mom. Goodnight."

"It's already morning," She replied cynically, watching the boy trudge down the hall. Erza waited until he left and sighed, wandering back to her bedroom and welcoming sleep like a warm blanket.

Simon, on the other hand, had run into a slight problem," March?"

The 13 year old Conbolt child was snoring softly on his bed, fresh tears shining on her face. She hugged a stuffed white dragon in her hands as tight as she could and let out a muffled sob. The big brother instincts in Simon pulled him to kneel down and brush some of the girl's dark bangs out of her eyes," Hey, March. Come on, get up. It's going to be okay."

She blearily woke up, staring at Simon in confusion. It took her a few seconds to remember why she was at the Fernandez household, but once she did, the tears began to flood again. The Crimson haired boy wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back gently, humming quietly in an attempt to soothe the child. Was her sobs had reduced to whimpers, he pulled apart and sat down next to return, she gave him an explaination," S-Simon. M-my parents d-didn't come home tonight. I-I'm sorry I t-took your bed, I don't have anywhere else t-to go."

He rubbed her hair and smiled softly. He had always thought of March as the little sister he had always wanted, and would trade her in a heartbeat for his deadbeat of a brother, Faris," That's okay, kiddo. I probably won't be needing much sleep anyways. I also know that your parents are extremely powerful and professional, and they're probably on their way right now. They probably just got held up by a train or something."

"You're probably right, Simon," She responded, cuddling her stuffed animal," Can you stay with me until I fall back asleep?"

The 19 year old grinned and made his way over to the couch that also occupied his room, plopping down on it," I'm not going anywhere."

"Thank you."

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Winter Fullbuster frowned, his first thought being that it was way too hot for his liking. Usually their house was 65 degrees at the most, so the freakish heat wave that engulfed his room made him want to diminish the source.

The ebony haired boy briefly glanced towards the door, then over to his window; it was open. No wonder it was so hot; the summer air must've snuck it's way in.

Just as he went to close it, he felt something underneath him. Winter froze, his gaze cautiously falling onto the object; Nashi," Flame-brain? What the hell are you doing in my bed?"

The pinkette shuffled and sighed, one of her eyes fluttering open," My family is too noisy and since I finished my breakfast early, I came here."

"What? No! Get out! Go sleep in Aqua's room!"

"She already kicked me out," Nashi whined, hugging one of his pillows tightly to her chest," I'm so tired."

"Sleep on the floor, then!" Winter commanded," My dad will kill both of us if he sees you here."

She gave him one of her rare, soft looks before sighing and picking up his pillow with her," Okay."

She was actually doing it? Winter balanced out his options, feeling progressively more guilty with each step she took. He ran a hand through his spiky locks and moaned, finally picking his blanket back up," Get in before I change my mind."

Nashi grinned widely before cannon-balling back in," Thanks, Wint!" Just before she went to close her eyes, she hopped back onto her knees," Hey look! The sun is rising!"

Winter rolled his eyes and settled himself next to her, secretly admiring the way the sun climbed over the mountains. When he peeked over at Nashi, his breath caught; the orange-ish pink sunlight highlighted her features and made her chocolate-colored orbs light up," It's kind of pretty," He murmured unknowingly, his gaze never leaving her.

The brown eyed girl snuck a glance at her rival, feeling the familiar sensation of butterflies rise in her stomach. Being with him in person was way better than any dream she could muster," Thanks for letting me stay."

"No problem. Just leave your unnatural body heat with your hothead of a dad next time."

"He's not a hothead!"

A few hours later, the two were fast asleep; Although they were on opposite sides of the bed, one of Winter's arms had strayed to the opposite side of the mattress, and Nashi was holding it underneath her cheek.

Aqua stared down at the two, biting back an excited squeal. Without a second thought, she pulled out her camera and snapped a quick picture before carefully closing the door behind her and making her way down the stairs.


	2. Chapter 2 The Dragon Slayers

**Hey Guys!****  
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**So, since I got some feedback from my last chapter, I've decided to go a little deeper into the world of Fairy Tail. Thank you so much to those who reviewed me last time! Anywho, I'll make this really quickly to clear up some confusion;**

**Nalu children: Nashi (18) Leo (17) Igleia (13)**

**Gruvia Children: Winter (18) Aqua (18)**

**GaLe Children: Ryos (19) Tanith (18) Cobalt (16)**

**Jerza Children: Simon (19) Faris (14)**

**Rowen Child: March (14)**

**Stingyu Child: Lutz (18)**

**Rogue's children (I don't really ship him with anyone, so he just adopted): Onyx (18) Spring (7)**

**Miraxus Children: Kolas (20) Opal (17)**

**Detox is a surprise, but see if you can guess who he is :) **

**Anyways, I don't own Fairy Tail. **

4th Gen Dragon Slayers;

Nashi Dragneel was one of those people who ate at least 5 meals a day and never gained a pound. She couldn't exactly point out why it was, but if she had to guess, she would think that it came from constantly training and fighting other people.

Still, even with all her training and occasional puking, something always made her give up a diet or pledge she previously made; chocolate. Chocolate for Nashi was like Strawberry Cheesecake for Erza. She was addicted to it and spend at least half of her job money of it.

Lucy, on the other hand, was sick of it.

"But mom! I can't live without it!"

The blonde woman sat at her desk, barely looking up from the book," It's unhealthy and you'll make yourself sick, not to mention the fact the you have an addiction."

Nashi puffed out her cheeks," Come on! I know it's an addiction, but I work the sugars off when I'm training. You can't deny that!"

"You spend half your money on sweets instead of sensible things," She pointed out.

"It's my money!"

"I'm the one paying for your housing and food, so unless you want to help out around here, I suggest you buy something useful."

Her daughter clenched and unclenched her fists," I don't see you taking Leo away from his keys."

"That's completely different and you know it, Nashi," Lucy warned, her tone serious. After a few minutes of angry silence, the blonde mother sighed and rubbed her temples. She seemed to be doing that a lot more now that she had children," How about I make you a deal? You need to hold off at least a month. If you can do that, I'll let you buy as much chocolate as you want."

The brown eyed girl groaned in defeat and trudged out of her mom's room. It was so unfair! Keys and chocolate were basically the same thing, but since Leo took after his mom, he's her favorite! The teenager huffed; if her mom wouldn't let her buy the sugary substance, then she'd just have to get some from someone else. After glancing at her mom, who was busy working on her story, Nashi ran out of her house and straight to Tanith's," Tan-chan, I need chocolate now!"

The dark haired girl blinked in surprise," Oh, hi Nashi-chan. What are you doing-"

"CHOCOLATE NOW!"

"AHHH!"

The door was slammed in the pinkette's face as Tanith ran away crying, absolutely terrified. She had been on the opposing side of Nashi's chocolate rampages before, but if it was between her and her mother, Lucy was scarier. It was better to just run and pray that the Dragneel girls didn't kick down the door and chase after.

Nashi let out a frustrated cry and punched her friend's door," GET OUT HERE, COWARD!" She waited a few seconds and frowned, trying to think of who else would provide her with sweets. Only one person came to her mind. With a wicked smile, the teenager sped across town.

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March Conbolt wanted to be Nashi.

She was so amazed by the amazing power that her role model contained, and she often wished that she was every bit as brave as the Dragneel girl. The blue haired girl knew that she was not only easily frightened, but weak. She was definitely the weakest dragon slayer, and probably one of the weaker wizards in Fairy Tail.

Still, March knew that she was still training, and no one treated her any differently because of it. Carla was a bit harsh on her from time to time, but her parents had been nothing but supportive. That was probably the reason her kindness and innocence was so apparent; she took after her parents.

March beamed as she watched Nashi tackle Winter and strangle him, commanding him to give her something," GIVE ME CHOCOLATE NOW!"

"GET THE HELL OFF ME, HOTHEAD!"

"I KNOW YOU HAVE SOME!"

"YOU'RE CRAZY!"

March, who was much like Romeo when he was her age, jumped up to support her role model," Just give her the chocolate already! You don't want to get in a fight with Nashi-chan! She's the strongest wizard in Fairy Tail!"

The pink haired girl sent her her famous grin before elbowing the water Mage in his face," See! She knows where it's at!"

"Don't go inflating her ego, her head is big en-OW! GET OFF, LAVA LOSER,"

She shrugged and shifted her bottom onto his upper back," Only when you either give me chocolate or buy me chocolate."

"Uh, I hate to break it to you, Nash," Simon interrupted," but your mom has forbidden us from helping you."

"What-never mind. What do you mean by 'us'?"

"Everyone in Fairy Tail," Aqua commented, way too amused at her teammates' fight," But-"

"But? But sounds good!" The dragon slayer hopped up off of the twin and ran to her best friend," What do you mean by but? Will you give me chocolate?"

The dark haired girl sweat dropped," Oh god, no. Lucy would murder me. What I'm referring to is," She lowered her voice down to a whisper," Sabertooth."

Nashi's smile widened and she shook the ice mage's hand in excitement," Yay for loopholes! March," She flipped around," Wanna come with?"

She sucked in her breath; Fahrenhiet wanted her to come with and no one else? The 13 year old nodded cheerfully," Okay, but I need to stop by home first to get my bag," March turned to Clover Strauss, Elfman and Evergreen's daughter," Tell mom and dad that I went to visit Sabertooth with Nashi! If I plan on staying overnight, I'll send Warren a message. Oh, and can you look after my exceed, Lila, for me?"

The girl nodded and waved the two dragon slayers of Fairy Tail goodbye," Lucy's gonna kill them when she finds out."

Faris Fernandez snorted," We'll blame Aqua."

"No! That's like death sentence! WINTER, DONT LET ME DIE!"

"I don't recall you coming to my aid when I was being squashed by a pink haired maniac."

"Come on, don't pretend like you didn't enjoy it."

"FARIS!"

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Lutz Eucliffe grumbled and crossed his arms," I didn't do it!"

"You didn't dye Onyx's hair black?" His dad, Sting, remarked sarcastically. Deep down, he knew that this was his son's doing, and was trying extremely hard to hide his pride.

"I did not."

"Yes he did," Said boy snapped, rubbing his once green hair sadly. Onyx, Rogue's 18-year-old son, had been adopted around the time Lutz was 6. He had forest green eyes, matching hair, and a scar on his chin, representing some dark past. That was probably why Rogue took the kid in; they both were the strong, quiet type. Fortunately, Lutz and Onyx hit it off very well, but shared their care for each other through banter and practical jokes.

"Shut up, Onyx."

The master rolled his eyes, fighting the nostalgic feeling that warmed up in his stomach when he heard the 4th generation dragon slayers fighting," Admit it, Lutz, we all know it was you."

The blonde 18-year-old huffed. He had inherited a lot from his dad, including the blonde hair and strongly build body. He had inherited his hazel eyes from his mom, Yukino, as well. Personality wise, he was a younger, flirtier version of Sting," But dad-"

Suddenly, the door burst open and Nashi jumped in, placing her hands on her hips in a superhero-like fashion and pointing one hand towards the sky," I need something that only you can give me!"

Sting rocketed up in excitement," Natsu!"

"How many times do I have to tell you I'm Nashi, Master Sting?" She agonized as she crossed her arms.

"You two look so alike; how am I supposed to tell the difference?"

"Uh, I'm a girl..."

The adult furrowed his eyebrows," But-"

"Ignore him," Lutz interrupted, wrapping his arm around the Fairy Tail wizard. This wasn't a new sight; Lutz was always hitting on the fire dragon slayer," How're you doing, babe?"

"Don't-oh never mind, I need-"

"Hush," He purred, placing his finger over her lips," I know what you want. Fortunately, I want the exact same thing. It must be destiny!"

"You want chocolate too?!"

Lutz sweat dropped," Uh, no. Sorry."

Onyx stepped forward," Did your mom cut you off? Oh, hi March."

The petite sky dragon slayer, who had just finished talking to Lector, waved shyly," Good afternoon, Onyx. Good afternoon, Lutz."

The pink haired girl blinked," Where's Onyx?"

"I'm right here."

"WOAH! YOUR HAIR! IT'S NOT GREEN ANYMORE!"

Lutz snickered, but tried to cover it with a cough. The shadow slayer narrowed his eyes at his so called friend before offering a two worded answer," Hair dye."

Nashi rubbed her chin thoughtfully before shaking her head in satisfaction," I like it better. It makes you look more like Rogue," That earned a minimal fraction of a smile from the boy," Anyways, back to what you asked earlier, mom said that I was addicted and told me I wasn't allowed to buy, forage, or steal chocolate anymore. I'm going crazy, and I can't last much longer!"

"How long have you lasted?"

"A few hours."

The other three dragon slayers exchanged unimpressed glances," That's it?"

"Shut up and give me chocolate."

"Only if you kiss me."

Nashi cringed, but March stepped in," She can't; Winter will murder anyone that tries to make a move on her, and you'd be an asset if the dragons attacked."

"What do you mean by that?" Nashi shrilled, turning bright red," He's my rival! He doesn't like me, and I don't like him!"

"Yeah right."

"Shut up!" By this point, many of the Sabertooth wizards began to pour in from dinner and jobs. Sting made eye contact with Orga and waved wildly, attracting the wizard's attention over to them.

"Lutz, I heard that your prank-" Orga paused and smirked at the girls," Oh, look! It's Fairy Tail's two 4th gen Dragon Slayers!"

"There's three dragon slayers in Fairy Tail," Nashi corrected darkly," He's still a Fairy Tail wizard."

Many people nearby winced at the name, but March remained interested. No one talked about the third dragon slayer around her for some reason, so she wanted to get as much out of this as possible," Are you talking about Edge?"

"If Edge is the name you're going to refer him by, you might as well call me Fahrenheit," She grumbled in response," His name is Ryos. Ryos Redfox."

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Ryos woke up with a scream.

He pushed himself into a sitting position, breathing heavily. He shakily used one hand to clutch his heart, trying to stop it from pounding too hard. After calming down slightly, the steel dragon slayer raked a hand through his choppy ebony hair.

It was almost comical how well Detox, Ryos's partner, knew him. The purple haired boy's eyes flickered over to him, a knowing smirk playing on his lips. He was never the type to take things to seriously, and often made a joke in the face of danger. So it was no surprise that Detox was being smug," Same dream?"

"It's always the same dream," The Redfox boy grumbled in response. Ryos was the exact opposite of his partner; he always took things seriously, a bored expression always present on his face. His dark aura earned him the name Edge, also known as the fallenFairy Tail wizard who refused to get his guild mark removed. Not many people knew why he abandoned the guild, but the rumors circulating about him made it seem like he mauled the guild wizards without fluttering an eyelash. Ryos stared at the fire, trying to wash away the frightening images that had played themselves on an agonizing loop night after night," The nightmares keep getting more realistic, though. Do you think I'm going insane?"

His friend shrugged nonchalantly," Probably."

"I'm being serious, Detox," He growled," I always see a girl with red hair, no older than March would be now, looking out over destruction. Each time, the dream gets progressively worse; Sometimes, I see destroyed guild halls and dead bodies. Yet, today…."

This peaked the poison dragon slayer's interest. Usually Ryos always saw the same things, so hearing something new would be both refreshing and entertaining," Ooh, something new! Go on."

"Nashi was in it."

"Nashi? As in Nashi Dragneel, daughter of Salamander? Fahrenheit herself?"

Ryos nodded grimly," She was in pretty bad shape, too. She was trying to tell me something, but I turned around and…"

Detox was on the edge of his seat, acting like a child getting to the best part of his book," Tell me now!" When he saw his friend's grimace, his enthusiasm faltered," It can't be that bad, can it?"

"There was a dragon."

Silence fell between the two. Both knew the seriousness that the creatures held, despite the fact that Ryos's dadhad been raised by one. Dragons were vengeful creatures, and if one got loose in Fiore...

"We should recruit," Detox mumbled, rubbing his head," We can't defeat it on our own, and we definitely can't ask for help from real dragon slayers. They wouldn't believe us."

"You're not suggesting-"

"Do we have any other choice?"

Ryos frowned and shook his head no," As long as we don't bring March into this. I already almost killed her once, I'm not going to let her risk her life for my sake."

The purple haired boy nodded solemnly," Okay then; I guess we're off to get us some 4th generation dragon slayers."


	3. Chapter 3 Nightmares

**I don't own Fairy Tail**

* * *

><p>Nashi and March ended up staying the night at the Eucliffe-Cheney house, because by the time they would've gotten home, no one would be awake. March had blubbered something about her parents being worried, but Yukino assured them that she would send their families a message and get them home safely in the morning. So, now that the situation had been handled, the two crashed in the living room on the couches and were out in a blink.<br>They got a few hours of shut eye before being rudely awaken by the boys.

The pink haired girl drearily blinked awake as Lutz shook her awake," What the he-"

"She finally woke up!" He cried in relief," Do you have any idea how long I've been shaking you? I thought you were a light sleeper like me, but I guess I was wrong."

She rolled her eyes," Yeah, whatever. Why the hell did you wake me up?"

"We're gonna escort you guys back to Fairy Tail, and we thought it'd be best to get an early start."

"We don't need an escort-"

Onyx, who had been gently waking March awake, explained further," Uncle Sting would've taken you guys himself, but he's the master, and Dad just got back from a job. We thought that it would be nice if we helped you guys so that they could get some rest."

Nashi frowned; she knew that they had good intentions, but there was no real win for her in this situation," Will you buy me chocolate?"

"Why?"

"I really like chocolate and no one in Fairy Tail is allowed to help me."

"What does that have to do with-"

"Please! Please please please please please-"

The two exchanged nervous looks," Fine! Just don't let it slip that we helped you. Your mom would kill us."

The female dragon slayer squealed in delight and hopped off the couch," I'm cool with it then! What do you think, March?"

"I'd enjoy their company," She replied sleepily," What time is it?"

"Around 5:00," Lutz saw a dark aura began to fill the air around Nashi and waved his hands frantically," Before you freak out, let me explain; we wanted to get you guys back before your parents have a panic attack."

Nashi grimaced, but thankfully the angry cloud of destruction surrounding her disappeared," Ew, I hate waking up before I have to."

Seeing that the 18 year old was in no position to leave yet, the blonde heaved her off the couch and pushed her towards the door," Come on, beautiful, lets start our trip," Lutz pressed, wrapping an arm around her to keep her from running back," Your darling parents are probably worried sick. Did you even tell them you were coming?" He added on a more serious note.

"...No."

That seemed to finally convince Nashi to get going. Once everyone was packed and ready to go, the quartet set off towards Magnolia. Nashi walked with her hands behind her head, Lutz with his hands in his pocket, and March holding Onyx's hand and leaning heavily against him, practically asleep. While she was dozing off, the older three upheld an avid conversation about why carrots were the only orange vegetables," I don't get it; do they start orange or what?"

"Of course not," Lutz answered confidently.

"You two are idiots; you do know that orange peppers are also-"

"Not as idiotic as you!"

Onyx hushed the blonde," Come on, March is asleep," His statement rang true; by this point, he had the younger girl on his back," Hey, where are we? Weren't we just on the road to Magnolia?"

Nashi and Lutz did a 360, double-checking to make sure the shadow dragon slayer was right," Huh. When did that happen?"

"I've never been around here before," Nashi pointed out," Do you guys have any idea where we are?"

The twin slayers shook their heads no with worried expressions evident on their faces. Lutz seemed to perk up, though, and pointed behind her," Why don't we ask that little girl for directions?"

Onyx went to shake March awake while the other two approached the little girl the blonde teen had referred to; she seemed around 7 or 8 years old with red-ish-coral hair. Unfortunately, she had her back towards them and didn't seem to notice the oncoming dragon slayers," Hey! Little girl! We don't know where we are!"

They watched as the small child turned to face them; instead of a usual, happy looking kid, the girl was much more terrifying. She had pitch black cracks visible on her milky white face. Her eyes were filled with what looked like ink, and her teeth were bloody. With a spine tingling crack, the girl tilted her neck to the point where it was practically laying on her shoulder," You're in purgatory where your useless souls belong," Her unnaturally low and petrifying voice answered.

"Shit! That little girl has more testosterone than you, Lutz!" Nashi laughed, finding the situation much more amusing than everyone else. Said boy, on the other hand, was too busy cowering behind her shadow," What? What's wrong?"

"Did you even hear what she said?" He hissed," We're in fucking purgatory! How the hell did that happen?!"

Before she could answer, his body burst into flames.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Nashi's eyes flew open and she let out a terrified scream.

Much to her surprise, March's high pitched scream accompanied hers, followed by shaky sobs. Nashi hugged her second favorite plush closer to her chest and tried to catch her breath. Once they had both calmed down, the two shared a nervous glance. They both knew exactly what the other had dreamed about. Still, the 18 year old stuttered out," Y-You saw it t-too?"

"Y-yeah."

"Damn."

Without another word, March padded across the floor and onto the couch next to Nashi," I don't want to sleep anymore."

"You guys too, huh?"

They turned to see the twin dragon slayer's sons in the stairwell. Onyx looked solemn, but there were traces of fear in his green eyes. Lutz seemed especially shaken up; his face was deathly pale, and one of his hands was gripping the railing with all his might. March jumped off the couch and ran to hug Lutz, rubbing comforting circles on his back. Nashi stood up with her fellow guildmate, but hesitated following the same suit; what if she had been the one to set him on fire? Noticing her discomfort, Onyx ruffled her hair," It wasn't your fault," When she didn't respond, he dropped his hand and clenched his teeth," I think that this calls for some hot chocolate, because after a nightmare like that, I don't give a damn about your fucking sugar ban."

The other three nodded in agreement and cautiously made their way to one of the couches, checking all the dark corners for the silhouette of the demon child. Once she deemed it safe, Nashi sighed and turned the lights. Only then did she settle on the armchair across from the others.

"He's right, you know," Lutz breathed out. Even though she had to strain her ears to hear him, his words made a much bigger impact on her than a punch to the gut would've. She shook her head no, refusing to believe his words. He burst into flames, for god sake! She was a fire dragon slayer, not a celestial pansy like her brother! It was her fault that he died, even if it was in a dream.

"Lutz I-" She was interrupted when the boy grabbed her chin and forced her to look him in the eye. Nashi cringed at the red rings surrounding his eyelids, indicating that he had probably woken up screaming," I'm so sor-"

"You didn't do it," He replied firmly," Whoever-or whatever-that monster was did. Got it?"

Nashi nodded gently, forcing back tears. Before she could stop herself, she flung her arms around the boy's neck, murmuring a combination of apologies and thank yous. Lutz supported her and stroked her pink hair, trying hard to keep from crying again," It'll be okay, Nash. We'll be okay."

"You're not allowed to die in real life."

"You're not allowed to blame yourself if I do."

Onyx entered the room with the four mugs and handed one to each dragon slayer. He sat himself next to March on the couch, while Nashi scooted over and cramped Lutz next to her. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, the dark haired boy spoke up," Is everyone okay?"

"I didn't see too much of it," March replied hoarsely, her eyes puffy," B-but I did hear things. I could hear the voice and Lutz's screams..."

He patted her shoulder and glanced over at his best friend. He already knew what his answer would be. No one should've experienced something like that. The weak looks that Nashi and Lutz held left a bad taste in his mouth; it was unnatural to see two of the cockiest people he knew look so disgruntled. Onyx gulped the rest of his drink and swore that whoever did that to them would regret it.

"I also heard someone else's voice."

This gained the attention of the other three," What other voice?"

Onyx exhaled, glad that he wasn't the only one," I heard it too. I think it came from that dark haired person that was watching us."

"What boy? Why didn't I see any of this?" Nashi turned to Lutz, who seemed to be gaining some color back in his cheeks," Lutz?"

He swallowed some of the hot chocolate and shook his head," I d-didn't see anything."

She squeezed his hand gently, glad that he was finally calming down," What did he look like, Onyx?"

"Dark hair, red eyes, gray clothes, fairy tail emblem-"

"Fairy Tail?!" Nashi and March squeaked.

"Yeah, and he kinda looked like Gajeel-"

The pinkette's eyes widened as big as frisbees," Oh my god, it can't be."

"What can't be?" Lutz questioned," You can't be suggesting that Edge was in our nightmare...right?"

She clenched her fists, fear fading into anger," Ryos. His fucking name is Ryos. Edge is the bastard who abandoned Fairy Tail seven years ago and parades his guildmark around like it'd no big deal!"

"They're the same person, Nash," Lutz mumbled gently, his brow furrowed in worry.

She growled, ignoring the boy," We need to find him and make him tell us why the hell he was in our dream," To prove her point, she grabbed her bag in one hand and scooped up March underneath her shoulder in the other," Let's go."

Lutz and Onyx shared hesitant glances," Uh, are you sure about-"

"I'm not going to let anyone die."

Onyx nodded in agreement and followed the girl out. Lutz took a deep breath and chuckled," I have a feeling I'm going to regret this," Then he followed them out.

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><p><strong>Yeah, so this chapter turned out to be a lot more serious than the past few, but it's going to lead into my first story arch. The main characters in this one will end up being the four dragon slayers mentioned above, Ryos and Detox, the Demon child, and one more person that I'll add in a little bit later. Anywho, I probably update around every week or so. Thanks for reading! <strong>

**-uprisingdragon **


	4. Chapter 4 The Meeting

It was scary to be around Nashi when she was mad, but the only thing more terrifying was when she went on one of her _Fahrenhiet rages. _Basically, it was the rare time that Nashi's temper (a horrible combination of her mom's sudden anger and her dad's bountiful energy) was blown over proportions. Everyone had learned that during these times, she was like a natural disaster; it was best to just hide and let her take her course.

As soon as the quartet left the house, it became apparent to the other three that their friend was in a rage. Onyx yanked March out from underneath her arm and stepped back, waiting until she was a few feet away to follow," Where are we going?"

"I thought I made that obvious," She growled in a tone a few octaves lower than her usual voice. The three flinched and blubbered quick apologies, mentally praying that she wouldn't lash out on them," We're going to find Ryos."

Knowing that it would only be worse to question her further, the others nodded in understandment. After a few hours of walking, the four dragon slayers ended up on the outskirts of Aster, the parchment city, around lunchtime. Nashi groaned loudly and placed her hands behind her head," I want some food."

Although the other three agreed that they were hungry, March felt the tingling sensation on the back of her neck that indicated they were being watched," Why don't we just wait until we get to the old Phantom Lord building? Didn't you say Edge would be there?"

"Come on, it won't hurt us to take a little break," Lutz pressed,nervously glancing at Nashi and praying that she wasn't still in a rage," How 'bout Onyx and I find a table or something and you guys get the food?" He mouthed _sorry_ the the youngest slayer.

Great; they were leaving her with the temper. How could they? One wrong move could cost her an arm! Then again, she trusted Nashi enough not to murder her, and she couldn't exactly say the same thing for the other two. Seeing that she was outnumbered, March sighed in defeat," Okay. Lets get ice cream or something to tide us over."

The quartet split up to do their separate duties. Nashi, who noticed her sister-figure's discomfort, nudged her and sent her a comforting grin," Is something bothering you?"

"No, I'm fine."

"That's believable," The pinkette snorted. March was about to retort, but her hero was already walking up the the vendor and placing her orders. Once they got their ice cream, the teenager continued to interrogate," If you want to go home, you can," She started softly," I understand if you think it's scary-"

"I'm thirteen, Nashi-chan. I can handle the nightmares," She assured, her voice full of self confidence. The brown eyed girl flinched, surprised by the girl's bluntness, but waved her sudden movement off. The dark blue haired girl didn't seem to notice the other's reaction and resumed talking," It's just that..."

"Just what?"

"I feel like someone was watching us," She checked her surroundings and slumped her shoulders," I don't notice anything anymore, though. It must've gone away."

The 18 year old rose her eyebrows and began to make her way back," Why didn't you say anything? We are dragon slayers; our senses are better than most people's."

"I figured I was just overreacting-ONYX! LUTZ!"

Nashi's eyes diverted to the duo, only to see them unconscious and getting dragged away by two young men. Anger boiled in her stomach, the familiar feeling of a Fahrenhiet Rage churning," HEY! LET THEM GO, BASTARDS!"

She strained her ears enough to hear the one with dark hair hiss," Ignore them."

Ignore them? Did he have any idea who he was talking to? Not to mention the fact that he was trying to kidnap her companions! Before she could stop herself, she chucked an ice cream cone at his head," COME BACK HERE AND FIGHT ME, COWARD!"

The two stopped dead. The less buff one, who had happened to be wearing a hat, watched in complete horror as the sweet slid down his partner's head and smacked the road," You're not actually-"

The dark haired one dropped Lutz onto the ground and turned around, revealing his eerily familiar red eyes. A shadow-like aura seemed to be coming off of him, revealing that not many people had stood up to him before. Nashi self-consciously held out and arm in front of March to keep him from hurting her, emitting an equally powerful and terrifying aura," Do you want to do this the easy way, or the hard way?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, fury evident in his eyes," If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you get."

Nashi lunged forward and punched his jaw, making contact and sending him soaring onto the rooftops. She grinned wildly and jumped up after him, cracking her knuckles as she did so," Looks like someone's all talk-"

The boy's hand suddenly turned into a metal bar and rocketed into her gut, pushing her onto the ground," Immature."

The brown eyed girl coughed and wiped her lower lip, not sure if she was more angered or excited to finally have a challenge," You haven't seen anything."

She hopped up and kicked her legs at him, only to have him block them by catching her feet and smashing her back onto the roof. Nashi heated up her hands and grabbed his ankles, causing an out of character yelp to spring from his mouth. She used this to her advantage and shoved her foot into his stomach, hoping to save her magic for the definite fight she would be having with Ryos later. He dropped her roughly onto the the building, carefully watching her push herself onto her feet and clench her fists.

The boy smirked," Not bad, kid."

"I could say the same for you, but I've got some questions first," She growled," What the hell do you want with-"

She was interrupted by a metal hook spiraling towards her. It circled around her waist and shoved her into a building across the street, pinning her body to the wall. Nashi swore under her breath and used her fire magic to try and melt the steel, refusing to look at the cement below her or the approaching predator. Fortunately, she felt the metal begin to liquefy underneath her touch. The girl smiled in relief and plunged her hands in flames and pointed them behind her," Fire Dragon Flamethrower!"

She recited the spell just in time, because the metal supporting her gave out. The fire erupted from her fingers and pushed her off the wall, causing her to do a front flip and barely make it back on top of the roof. The attacker seemed to flabbergasted by her sudden abilities to make an offensive move, so she took the advantage," Fire Dragon's ROAR!"

Flames burst from her lips and stampeded to the dark haired boy, engulfing him in the burning substance. Nashi nodded in satisfaction, and with one wave, caused the fire surrounding him to go out. She bolted forward and grabbed his collar, pulling him down so that they were face to face," Now answer me; what do you want with Lutz and Onxy?!"

Instead of answering, the boy leered. Nashi felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and tightened her grip," Look down," He suggested darkly, an unnerving smile forming on his face.

Much to her shock, steel molded it's way around her feet, keeping her in place. She grimaced and tried to get herself loose, completely ignoring the fact that the boy she had once been beating was now out of her grasp.

With one swipe, the boy shaped his finger into a knife and cut her tights. An unreadable expression covered his face when he saw her white Fairy Tail mark," It's you."

Nashi blinked dumbfoundedly at him, still trying to move her legs," What do you mean? Have we met?"

His cockiness shifted into panic," This is too big of a coincidence; it can't be you. You were 11-"

"Ryos?" She breathed out, her mind praying that it wasn't true. It'd make sense, of course. The dark hair, red eyes, and steel magic made it fairly obvious. Her curiosity quickly changed into fury," Why the hell did you attack my friends, you traitor?!"

"What the hell are you doing with them in Aster? Last time I checked, they were in Sabertooth."

"You're avoiding my question!"

"So what if I am? You're doing the same thing."

Nashi sneered," Ugh, fine! Let me out of this foothold so that we can talk like adults and come up with solution that benefits us equally."

He stared at her a few seconds before nodding," Okay," Fortunately, he followed her orders and released her," Nice vocabulary, by the way. I didn't think you knew that many words."

She snarled and stomped back onto the road, where the twin dragon slayers were finally awake and sitting at the tables. The thug wearing the hat jumped up and approached Ryos," Do you know who these guys are? Not the two boys-"

"All I know is that this," he motioned to the pinkette," Is Nashi."

The boy removed his hat in awe, revealing a head of wild, purple locks," Really? I'm Detox. You said she was 11-then again, that was the last time you saw her-"

Ryos ignored his rambling," Who's the kid?"

She stood up and bowed respectfully," My name is March Conbolt, sir."

Ryos and his partner exchanged bewildered looks. The youngest watched in horror as the dark haired boy's lip curled in disgust," No. Fucking. Way. She is not coming along."

"Who said _we_ were?!" Lutz exploded," I don't remember you asking!"

"It's not an option for you to back out," He spat. The dark haired boy turned to March and waved her off," Go home. You're not old enough to go on this mission."

"What exactly is _this mission?" _Onyx asked," And why isn't she old enough? I recall her mother only being 12 when she first attended the Grand Magic Games. What could be more dangerous than that?"

March puffed up in pride when they talked about her mom, but deep down, she was curious; What could be worse than fighting against powerful mages? Ryos stared at the 13 year old critically before speaking up," If I tell you, you don't have the choice to run home to your mommy. Got it?" She nodded furiously," That goes for the rest of you as well."

"Is it the demon child?" Lutz questioned, trying not to show that his face was a shade paler than it had been before.

"Partially-"

"They've been having the dreams too?" Detox interrupted," That's weird."

The shadow dragon slayer spoke up, the image of the boy filling his brain," I've seen you! March, he must've been the guy you heard."

"That's not important right now."

Nashi, who had previously been sulking in the corner like a child, crossed her arms," Why not? What's more important than a bloodthirsty demon that has been plaguing our dreams?"

"A dragon."

The statement earned a shocked silence from the newcomers. Ryos and Detox, on the other hand, had grim expressions on their faces that proved they were serious. After a few minutes of horror, the pink haired girl that broke the silence," You've got to be kidding me."

"Why would I? I don't want anything to do with you people."

"Excuse me, Ryos-san-"

Nashi flinched and glared at the younger girl," Don't call him that."

She rolled her eyes and continued," If you don't mind me asking, why don't you tell our parents instead of us? They are undoubtedly more polished than we are and have handled situations similar to this one."

He grimaced," They wouldn't trust me."

"And you think that we should?" Onyx clarified," You did just attempt to kidnap two of us and fought the other."

"You saw the dream too, did you not?" Once again, silence was enough of an answer for him," I've been having that same damn nightmare for a month now. If you help me defeat the dragon, I'll help you destroy the demon that murdered blondie."

March squirmed doubtfully," I'm not sure about-"

"You said you wanted to be a part of it, and now you have to," Ryos commanded, casting a dark shadow over her," If you want to be treated like an adult, you're going to have to be a big girl and do exactly what either Detox or I tell you, got it?"

"But-"

"You don't have a choice; if you try to leave, we will find you. This isn't playtime anymore; you can't hide and you can't run. You're best off just following orders and keeping quiet-"

Nashi shoved herself inbetween the two and pushed Edge away," You have no right to say that to-"

"I have a right because _I _warned her and _she _insisted that she was old enought to help. I'm not kidding around," Before she could speak up, he plowed onwards," My words go for the rest of you as well. There's no turning back and no room for cowards. No one else will believe us, so there's no point in asking for help. There's only five of us that have a chance in defeating it. Back out now, and you're giving yourself a death sentence."

The pink haired girl gritted her teeth; she despised him already, but knew that the consequences of running away wouldn't just be having two highly skilled mages after her. Chances were that there'd be a chaotic dragon and a murderous demon on the loose. People would die because of them if she tried to escape. Nashi frowned deeply, never dropping her glare," Fine."

March gasped and the twins burst into outrages, demanding to know why she agreed to their terms. The brown eyed girl simply held up a hand to quiet them down and clenched her fists," I'm not doing it for them; I'm doing it for you, Lutz," The blonde bit his lip and let his gaze fall to his feet while his best friend wearily nodded," March, I'm sorry you had to be involved in this, but you're going to have to be mature and do what we tell you. Don't worry," She added softly," I won't let anything hurt you."

The dark blue haired girl was shaking in terror, but managed a brave nod," O-okay," She balled her hands up,a determined look sparking up," I'm going to do it to the best of my ability."

The other three shared a proud look and ruffled her hair. March giggled and handed the boys their mostly melted cones, laughing with the other two as Nashi complained about wasting hers on Ryos. Detox managed a smile and nudged his partner," I like this bunch."

"Don't get attached to them," He warned," Once we've defeated the monsters, I never want to see them again."


	5. Chapter 5 An Odd Character

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

* * *

><p>In many way, March was exactly like her mother. Sure, she was as much of a fangirl as Romeo was when he was her age, but she had similar morals to her mom. Wendy had always told her to be nice to people and they would be nice back, and that faithful rule had never failed until now.<p>

In her opinion, Ryos was the crankiest, scariest, darkest, and meanest person she has ever met. Whenever she tried to talk to him, he either growled or shoved her away. If she sent him a smile, he returned it with a glare. March even tried to give him the rest of him ice cream, only to have him knock it onto the ground. Every single time she got shot down, she would try to remember her mom's words of wisdom and trudge on. The Conbolt girls were ones to believe that everyone had at least a little bit of good in them.

March was starting to doubt that that rang true with Ryos.

It wasn't only her that he was rude to; Nashi and him would bicker for hours on end about the most pointless subjects. Whenever Lutz tried to crack a joke and lighten the mood, he would command the blonde to shut up. Onyx didn't even try.

Fortunately, his partner was the exact opposite of him. Detox was a happy-go-lucky extrovert who chatted with everyone and was almost always smiling. He even stopped once to help an injured bird (Ryos shot it down earlier for being "too bright"). Instead of having dragon slayer magic, he used healing and support magic. When Nashi asked if he knew any offensive spells, he immediately quieted down and murmured that his dad skipped out on him before he could teach him. No one brought the subject up ever since.

March rubbed her knees wearily and stared at her feet, unable to sleep. The team had stopped at a hotel around 11:00ish, and while the boys had gone to their respective rooms, Nashi had murmured something about going for a walk and left without any more explanation. Usually she wouldn't be worried, but it was already 12:30 and there was no sign of the fire dragon slayer.

The bluenette frowned nervously before pulling on a sweater from her bag and setting out to look for her hero. The night sky was eerily dark, almost as if it were trying to warn her that something was afoot. She shook the feeling off and shuddered, pulling her jacket closer to herself," Nashi! Nashi, where are you?!"

Her only answer was an echo. March cupped her hands around her mouth and tried again, refusing to believe that her role model may have skipped out on her," Nashi, please! Please come out! You...you promised."

"Can't find your friend?"

March flew around and held her fists up, a deep shiver running down her spine when she found herself face to face with about a dozen shady looking people," I-I'm fine, thank you..." Her hesitance leaked into her voice.

The leader of the group stepped away from his spot and bent down so that he was too close for comfort," How 'bout me and my buddies-"

Before she could give it a second thought, the sky dragon slayer punched the man's eye and held up her hands," Sky Dragon's gust!" A wave of strong wind blew at least five of the thugs away, but there was still around seven more left.

"Get her!"

"Sky dragon's slicer!" Much to her relief, the attack took out two more villains, leaving five left. March clenched her fists and turned her focus to the last five people," If you don't want a similar fate, I suggest you stand back."

A grungy looking woman snorted," What makes you think that you can take us all out, little March Conbolt?" Said girl gasped in shock, slowly coming to realize that she had fallen into an enemy guild's trap. She had heard stories about how bad people had tried to kidnap Winter and Opal Strauss, Mirajane's daughter, a long time ago to try and hold a ransom on them (naturally they beat their "kidnappers" to a pulp). If they could get out of it alive, so could she! March balled up her hands confidently and nodded," I _know _I can."

"Why are you so cocky? Someone ought to put you in your place," The woman reached out to grab her, but March pulled away and shot a pulse of air at her.

"I'm already in my place; it's called Fairy Tail!" She smiled faintly and cupped her hands around her mouth," And now it's time for the finishing move; Sky Dragon's ROAR!" Much to the younger girl's surprise, she blew away the remainder of the thugs. It took her a few seconds to catch her breath, but once she did, she punched the air," I did it! Nashi-san is going to be so proud!"

"Is she now?"

March froze and turned milky white in a matter of milliseconds; she had heard that voice before. It was too deep, too familiar. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed shakily, gathering up all of her courage and turning around. Much to her shock, it was only a little girl. March tilted her head curiously, intrigued by the dark eyes and cracks on her face. Was something wrong with her, or was it part of her magic," A-are you okay? I heard a voice from a dream, and I remember it being evil. I can get you somewhere safe, if you like."

"The youngest of fourth was the first to go, I embodied and buried her in woe. The second fourth is the blonde with a beam, but my evil grasp only reached him in dreams. The third little girl with the dark blue hair, is the next victim to be caught in my snare," the child chanted, her voice identical to the one from the nightmare. The hairs on the back of March's neck stood straight up, and she found herself in a state of shock. She didn't know who the first person she was talking about was, but she knew the second was Lutz. That meant that the 13 year old was the next person, and she didn't want to know what _caught in my snare _meant. Unfortunately, the demon child already had a ball of black magic slithering around her arm," Time to go-"

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

Before she could process what was happening, someone grabbed her around the stomach and heaved her over their shoulder. She figured that whoever was running away with her draped onto them probably had good intentions. (There was also the voice in the back of her head that prayed that she wouldn't have to put up with three different evil forces in the time slot of an hour.)

She saw the opponent stalking after them, an ink-like substance pouring out of her eyes. March sent a nervous glance to try and see a glimpse of her savior, only to notice that he wasn't aware of their pursuer. She cupped her hands around her lips, and with much more force than earlier, chanted the spell," SKY DRAGON'S ROAR!"

The force of the attack caused her helper and herself to fly forward and onto the ground, but the whirlwind struck their villain and roughly pushed her out of sight. Unfortunately, her rescuer didn't notice her success and picked her right back up before continuing to run.

After uncomfortably bouncing up and down on someone's shoulder for five minutes, the person slowed to a stop and carefully placed her onto the ground. It was too dark to see who her savior was, so she spoke up," Umm..." She quickly remembered her manners and bowed," Thank you for saving me. My name is-" Instead of staying to listen, the person exited the alleyway he had carried her into. She stumbled slightly, but quickly followed him. She took note that the person was a man, probably around Simon's age," Uh, my name is March. I'm sorry for bothering you, but I'm only stopping in this town for the night. I don't know my way around, and-please stop walking so fast, I'm not trying to be a nuisance-"

"For Mavis's sake, stop talking! Just follow me back to the hotel, got it?"

She bit back a surprised welp; it was Ryos. Out of all the people who could've saved her, it had to be the last person she expected. Honestly, she would've been less shocked if one of the thugs she knocked helped her. Still, he had given her aid in a time of need, and Wendy said that she should be grateful when things like this happened. She placed on her cheeriest smile and hugged him from behind," Thank you, Ryos-san!"

He winced and moved to push her off of him, but paused before he could follow through. The steel dragon slayer exhaled and carefully held onto her wrist, causing March's breath to catch. To make the sudden movement even more surprising, Ryos squeezed it gently," I meant what I said about not doing anything without telling Detox or I. I would be responsible if anything happened to you, and I don't know if I could handle...it...happening again."

"What happening again?"

Ryos flinched, pain evident in his features," You don't remember?"

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion," Remember what? Have we met?"

His expression turned back to its stone cold state, and he stepped away. Ryos opened his mouth to say something, but turned and started to walk back to their destination," It's nothing. We haven't met before. I left Fairy Tail long before you could recall-"

"If you left Fairy Tail, why do you still have your mark?" He spun around and shot her a glare that rivaled the one that threatened her earlier that day. March knew something different now, though; despite how much he covered it up, he cared about them," Well?"

"That is none of your business."

"I'm making it my business."

"What the hell happened to you? You were fucking timid earlier today, and now you're more annoying than the pink haired freak."

"She's not a freak," She defended," If you guys stopped fighting and actually talked, you would see how amazing she is."

His rolled his eyes," I don't even want to bother with that. She is annoying and immature," March snorted, causing him to cross his arms huffily," Why the hell am I still talking to you?"

"It's because we're friends now."

"No, we're not."

"You say that, but you don't mean-"

"Shut up," The dark blue haired girl held her hands up in defeat, her shoulders slumping in disappointment. That was the closest thing she's had to a conversation with him, and she feared that she had already upset him. Who knows; maybe she scared Nashi off by being too clingy. Almost as if he was reading her thoughts, Ryos spoke up," She was just trying to find a post office so that she could tell your guild that you guys were safe. She's back at the hotel now and waiting for you."

March blinked," How did you know-"

"Detox knows a lot of types of magic. While he specializes in healing magic, he dabbles in telepathy, support, and..." He snapped," Boomerangs."

"Boomerangs? That's not a type of magic."

"He needs to protect himself somehow," A shadow of a smile flickered on his face," He's a good guy."

"You're a good person too."

"I'm not. You out of everyone should know that. Yet...," He glanced over at her," You don't. Why?"

March sent a weary look up at the hotel and shrugged," I don't know how you acted when you were in the guild hall, but my mom has always told me that there's good in everyone. My dad, on the other hand, doesn't quite believe that. I think he gets it from Natsu, and that is okay. Natsu fights for his friends. That's probably why I look up to Nashi; even though she fights a lot, it's always for a good reason. Whether it be a simple spar with Winter or fighting you to protect Onyx and Lutz. I don't doubt that Nashi would challenge that thing we saw from the nightmare, especially after what it did to Lutz...I'm getting off subject," She yawned and stepped inside the building, following the 19 year old to the stairs," What I'm trying to say is that I knew that there was good in you. You are a tough nut to crack, though, I will give you that."

He snickered and nudged her towards her hotel room door," I'm not sure if I should thank you or not, but you better not go telling people that I'm nice or anything. It'd ruin my image," he added seriously," Night, Squirt."

"Don't call me that."

"Don't pretend that we're friends, because we're not."

She giggled sleepily," Goodnight, Ryos-san."

As if he suddenly remembered something, the 19 year old stopped her from opening her door," Don't tell the Sabers that we saw the demon."

"What? Why?"

"I can tell that the dream alone took a tole on them. If they discovered that the monster that murdered one of them is real...it wouldn't be healthy for them."

She narrowed her eyes," I think you're underestimating them."

"I know what I'm talking about."

"But-"

"March," He warned," Go to bed."

She knew that she had been beaten," Fine, I trust you. Goodnight," March wandered back into her hotel room, only realizing now how tired she was. Before she could head to bed, though, Nashi pounced on her," OH MY MAVIS, YOU HAD ME SO FREAKING WORRIED! ARE YOU OKAY? DID YOU GET HURT?"

"Nashi-san, calm down."

"I BET YOU DID GET HURT! I WILL OBLIVERATE WHATEVER EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT LAYING A HAND ON YOU-"

"Nashi-san!"

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Ryos watched their door close before entering his room. Detox was sitting cross-legged on the bed, fighting the tired look that was overtaking his features. He skimmed his friend before patting the spot on the bed next to him," You look exhausted."

The dark haired boy followed his partner's orders and sat down," I _am _exhausted, but you shouldn't worry about it. You need some sleep."

"Hey," He elbowed him," You're just as tired as I am, if not more. What happened out there?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"It'll bother you more if you don't."

He shook his head," I doubt it will."

"Fine; it'll bother me if you don't spit it out."

The two held a stare off for a few minutes, and as usual, Detox won. Ryos bent down to untie his laces as he explained," I let my guard down around March."

"Good."

"What do you mean by _good_?! If I get attached and something happens to her-"

"You're already attached," He pointed out.

Ryos groaned and kicked off his boots," I knew this was a bad idea. Why the hell did you convince me to collect them?"

"You missed them."

He blinked, processing the amount of truth behind his best friend's words. There was something in the back of his head, urging him to return to the guild and let all the barriers he had been putting up for years collapse, but something stopped him. Ryos let his gaze fall onto the ground," I...I don't miss them. If I go back to the guild, they won't see past Edge. It's too late to redeem myself."

Detox furrowed his eyebrows in concern," We're not talking about March and Nashi anymore, are we?"

"...They won't forgive me."

"You're being too hard on yourself; no matter what you do, they still care about you and are probably worried that you haven't contacted them in the past seven years! Not only that, but in order to protect yourself, you set up a reputation that makes you look like a bad guy!" He ran a hand through his hair," We're 19. Isn't it time you handled the situation like an adult?"

"They wiped her memories," He spat," They probably did the same to Nashi. I'm not surprised; who would want to remember the thing I did?" Before Detox could reply, the steel dragon slayer turned the lights off," I'm going to bed."

The violet haired boy frowned and watched his friend exit the room, distressed that his speech didn't convince him," Think about what I said."

"Follow your own advice, hypocrite."

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><p><strong>Hey guys! Sorry for no description last week. I'm still learning how to use this...hehe. Thank all of you guys for commenting on this, I love seeing the new ones up! Anyways, I'd actually like to see who your favorite character (or characters) is. PLEASE COMMENT BELOW! (I love feedback, and chances are, if you tell me your favorite, I'm more likely to put them in future chapters.) Thanks for reading!<strong>

**-uprisingdragon**


	6. Chapter 6 Remembering

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

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><p>Nashi was the first to notice March's drastic mood change towards Ryos. Instead of cowering in fear with the occasional question, she was trying extremely hard to get a conversation out of him. The only answer he would give would be either a growl of a brief nod, but it caused the 13 year old to brighten up immensely.<p>

Nashi felt Detox nudge her, so the two let the others get ahead before speaking," Ryos mentioned something to me last night."

She was almost surprised that someone actually wanted to speak with the asshole, but then she remembered that the two boys were friends," Oh?"

"He said that March didn't remember what happened when you guys were 11 or something. Do you know why?"

The pink haired girl blinked," Remember what?"

"You don't remember either?" He burst, covering his mouth quickly. Onyx sent a suspicious look towards the two, but then turned his attention back to watching over March. Once the coast was clear, he continued," Neither of you can recall being friends with him?"

She furrowed her eyebrows," I was never friends with Ryos. I was friends with...uh...Aqua and Tanith. Ryos...um...he...he was in...I don't know what he did back before he...what did he do?"

Detox nodded slowly, trying to make sense of the minimal amount of information she was giving him," Do you even know what he used look like?"

Nashi frowned and clutched her head, annoyed at the oncoming headache," What's with all these questions? Are you trying to distract me by making my head hurt?"

"Yes; it's called thinking," Ryos slowed down so that he was in pace with the duo and smirked," I'm not surprised that you don't know the feeling."

"I think all the time! If I didn't, I'd be on the first train to Magnolia!" She retorted, though she noticed the sharp pain wasn't going away," It's the questions he's asking that is causing it."

The 19 year old shifted his gaze to Detox, who smiled sheepishly," I was seeing if she remembered you."

"You remember me?" Nashi flipped around to the dark haired boy with wide eyes. She winced at the sudden movement and soothingly rubbed her hair," How? I don't remember you!"

He shrugged nonchalantly, but there was something deeper evident in his features. Although she couldn't exactly pinpoint what his thoughts were, Nashi sighed and patted his shoulder comfortingly. As soon as she did it, though, her eyes widened to the size of frisbees and she recoiled. Unfortunately, that caused the pounding sensation in her head to increase in power," Why the hell did I just do that?!" She flipped around to Detox and pointed an accusing finger at him," Are you controlling me with you mind games?"

The healer shook his head no furiously," Don't look at me! I'm just as shocked as you are!"

Meanwhile, Lutz, Onyx, and March were in the front having their own conversation," This is ridiculous. We can't find a dragon by wandering."

Onyx nodded in agreement," This better not be a set up; I'm not in the mood."

"When are you in the mood for a set up?"

"Shut up, Lutz."

March giggled, easing the tension between the boys," Come on, guys. I know that Ryos-san is a good person-"

"Since when?" Onyx grumbled.

The 13 year old ignored him and continued on,"-and he wouldn't-"

"He did try to kidnap us," Onyx added.

"He fought Nashi."

"He also threatened you and is forcing you to come with us on this pointless journey. Why are you, out of everyone, on his side?" The shadow dragon slayer queried.

She opened her mouth to respond, but paused. Yes, Ryos did just save her the night before, but that didn't seem to be a good enough reason to completely trust him. After all, he had been nothing but rude to her from the beginning...was it the beginning? March played with her hair thoughtfully, trying to recall where she saw him before. Suddenly, she felt a ticklish sensation in the back of her head. She shivered uncomfortably and tried to rub the soft spot, wondering how the tickle had gotten there.

Almost as if they were reading each other's minds, Nashi and March exchanged worries glances. The trio behind her seemed to be in yet another avid argument, but the pinkette was more reserved than usual. In fact, she looked nautious. Was she witnessing the odd feeling in her head as well?

March was so caught up in her own thoughts that she walked straight into Onyx's back," Hey-"

"We've been here before."

Nashi felt the color drain from her cheeks; they had been there in the dream. Her eyes skimmed the area anxiously, waiting for the demon to pop out and attack. She glanced at March, who had her fists clenched and a dreadfully white face. Nashi's eyes flickered over to Lutz; even though he looked like he was in rough shape, he didn't look nearly as bad as the youngest. Ryos seemed to notice as well, because he approached the girl and stood in front of her in a protective manner," Detox, get her out of here."

The twin dragon slayers quirked their eyebrows suspiciously. Onyx, who had unknowingly stepped in front of Lutz, was the one to question his actions," Why her? Lutz was the one that was attacked."

"If he wants to go, he can," The steel dragon slayer responded," All I ask is that you and Nashi stay to help me fight it."

Lutz shook his head and clenched his fists," I'm gonna stay and fight."

"I want to fight too," The youngest protested, only to recieve a glare from the dark haired boy," You saw me last night; I know it. I can fight."

"It's after you, and I'm not going to risk your life to prove a point," He stated.

"I'm not weak, Ryos!"

Nashi, Lutz, and Onyx shared vacant looks," Uh, what happened last night and why would the demon want March?"

"They're picking us off, one by one," He growled," They're not going to choose the strongest first. I don't doubt that March would be a powerful asset and a huge help, but seeing that she is the next target, I'm not willing to take that chance."

The dark haired girl blushed and nodded in understandment," Okay, Ryos-San."

"You forgot to answer why the demon-"

"Come on, Detox-san," She blurted, grabbing the boy's hand and hauling him off. Right before she disappeared behind the horizon, she held up her thumb and pointer finger; the Fairy Tail sign," Make sure you beat them, Nashi-san! Don't give in, no matter what!"

The pinkette blinked. Don't give in, no matter what? Where had she heard that? March had said that before. It wasn't recently, that was for sure; her memory recalled the girl being young at the time.

_"Don't give in, no matter what!" _

Nashi whimpered and clutched her head, trying hard to ignore the pounding sensation that was now ripping through her skull. It felt like someone was using a hammer to shove nails into her brain.

Onyx tilted his head in concern and carefully placed a hand on her shoulder," Nashi, are you okay? You look pale."

_"Don't give in, no matter what!" _

Before she knew it, her knees gave out and she collapsed. Luckily, Onyx held out his arms and caught her, slowly desending her down until she was safely on the ground. She could barely process the sound of Lutz's cry, but she still cringed at the sound. She wasn't sure if it was because it made her feel bad that he was scared for her, or if it physically hurt her head to hear him.

_"Don't give in, no matter what!" _

_"I won't, March, I promise! I will never forget him!"_

"Nashi!" The blonde yelled, trying to shake her out of the state," Snap out of it!"

Ryos pushed the light dragon slayer out of the way," What the hell do you think you're doing?! You're going to hurt her!"

"Since when do you care? You've only known her a day and you've despised her!"

_"I will never forget him!"_

"I've always cared about both March and Nashi!"

The brown eyed girl scrunched her forehead up in confusion; Ryos has always cared about them? Why was he so mean, then? Why did he threaten them? Her vision began to blur all visible objects together and beads of sweat stuck to her forehead.

_"Take care of her for me."_

_"Don't leave, Ryos! You're my best friend!"_

"I left because I brought them pain, and I'm _still _bringing them pain! They're better off without me in their lives!"

_"You're better off without me in your lives."_

"Wait," Onyx's voice stood out," What the hell is that?!"

There was a brief moment of spine chilling silence that caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up straight; although she couldn't see what it was, she had a feeling she knew what it was.

"DRAGON!"

Nashi sucked in a breath before passing out.

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_11 year old Nashi sat at the bar, sipping her strawberry-banana smoothie and watching Simon Fernandez and Kolas Dreyer glare daggers at each other. The two were almost as bad as Nashi and Winter when they were fighting. She sighed cheerfully, glad that her rival was on a family mission. Honestly, that boy was a handful._

_Unfortunately, this also meant that Aqua, his twin sister and one of her best friends, was gone too. Tanith had just gotten a new book and shut herself up in her room to read it. Simon was fighting with Kolas, Opal was trying to braid Elfman's son, Clover, and Loke was helping Leo. With everyone already doing something, Nashi felt lonely and had nothing to do. Sadly, when Nashi had nothing to do, her mom made her babysit Igleia and March so that she could train with Leo. The pink haired girl let her eyes fall on the two 6 year olds and frowned, extremely bored. _

_"Someone looks like they're in need of attention."_

_Nashi smiled in relief and turned to the 12 year old boy," Ryos, what are you doing here? I thought that you were on a mission with Asuka."_

_He shrugged and sat on the stool next to her," We finished early. Let me guess; all of your friends are busy so your mom made you babysit again."_

_"It's so unfair! I don't even get paid," She glanced down at Igleia, who was tugging on her big sister's sleeve," What's up, kiddo?" _

_"Don't you like spending time with me? I love coming to Fairy Tail, and March-chan says that you're the coolest big sissy ever!" _

_Nashi glanced over at March and giggled, amused at how the young girl was trying to climb us Ryos's leg. With one swipe, she scooped the little blonde up in her arms and kissed her cheek. Despite the little girls being annoying, Nashi was extremely fond of them," Of course I like spending time with you! I'm just bored without either Aqua or Tanith here."_

_"Well!" The black haired boy huffed," Maybe I should just leave."_

_She scoffed and punched his arm," No way! Fairy Tail is dull without you here." _

_Before the teasing could continue, Natsu made his way over and tapped his oldest daughter on the back," Hey Fahrenheit, can I take blondie home? It's getting near her bedtime."_

_Igleia frowned, tears brimming her eyes," I wanna play with March and sissy more!"_

_"Once again, no one appreciates me," Ryos joked, earning an elbow in the gut from his friend. _

_The two stuck out their tongues at eachother until Natsu sent them a playful glare. He took Igleia from the pink haired girl and glanced down at the other 6 year old," Can you take March back to her house? I really need to get this one back in time for her story."_

_Igleia, who was a budding bookworm, perked up," Story? Yay!"_

_The sky dragon slayer unintentionally brought the attention back to her by hugging Ryos's knee. He sent a hopeless glance over to Nashi, who grinned cheekily," We'd love to, papa. Come here, March," The youngster detached herself from the boy and ran into Nashi's arms. The pinkette picked the blue haired girl up and held her at her hip," Come on, Ryos."_

_The trio of young dragon slayers set out into the cool night air in a comfortable silence. Nashi knew that her friend usually wasn't one for conversation, and March was practically asleep on her shoulder. She sighed happily and leaned her head on Ryos's shoulder," I'm tired."_

_"I can take the squirt home if you want."_

_"Nah, I can handle it. Anyways, Aunt Wendy would be suspicious if I wasn't the one to return her child."_

_Ryos nodded," I see your point. It's very honorable of you." _

_She opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a loud crash from a nearbye alley. March's eyes widened and fear as she hid her head in Nashi's hair. The older two exchanged looks and nodded before they said," I'll take care of it," at the same time. _

_The 12 year old furrowed his eyebrows," You take March home like you said you wanted to, and I'll check out what's going on over there."_

_"No," Nashi retorted," You take March home so that she's safe, and I'll defeat whatever bad guys are in the back."_

_"I'm more experienced and older, so I should be the one that takes care of it!"_

_"I need the training and real life experiences, so I'll take care of it!"_

_Ryos glared at her," Nashi. Go home." _

_She huffed, pretending to agree with him," Fine," She lied. This seemed to convince him, because he took off down the alleyway. Once he had faded into the shadows, Nashi gently laid the six year old down and kneeled so that they were at eye level with each other," March, I'm going to make sure that Ryos-san is okay. You see that trash can?" The little girl nodded," I want you to be a big girl and hide behind it until Ryos-san and I return, okay?"_

_March whimpered slightly, but did as she was told," Don't take long, Nashi-san."_

_The pink haired girl smiled reassuringly before taking off down the alleyway. The cement beneath her feet got slimeyer the farther she went, and the light faded away into pure darkness. The pre-teen squinted her eyes, trying to adjust to the blackness. Once she could see, she was horrified; there were at least 20 people surrounding Ryos. _

_He flipped around, aware of her presence," It was a set up!"_

_Her blood ran cold," W-what? A set up?"_

_The dark haired boy spun around and punched one of the enemies," GET HELP!"_

_Before she could even think about following his commands, someone roughly grabbed her arm and threw her in the middle with Ryos. Her bottom slammed into the ground and one of her knees scraped against it. She winced and shakily stood back onto her fists, engulfing her hands in flames," I don't think they're going to let us go unless we beat them."_

_Although they were back to back, she could feel him smirk," I guess we'll just have to pulverize them, then." _

_The two dove straight into fighting, each taking ten. Nashi let her mind die down and allowed her instincts to take over," Fire dragon's firework!" Her magic dotted out of her hands and burst into the crowd, taking down at least three of the goons. Her arms opened wide, not done with the others," Fire Dragon wing attack!" _

_Seven gone. Nashi took a step back, completely in shock; she had defeated her half. She won. The 11 year old tried extremely hard not to squeal, completely wrapped up in her success. She was so proud, in fact, that she didn't notice Ryos on the ground. _

_The steel dragon slayer wearily looked up at the last competetor. The asshole had attacked him from behind and kicked him down. The man snickered and held his spear up, poised to attack. The Mage rolled his eyes and turned his hand into a steel dagger. The man's lips lifted up into a twisted grin," Good riddance, kid!"_

_Footsteps._

_A scream._

_Blood._

_Nashi's face lost all color._

_Ryos screamed._

_March fell as soon as Ryos's steel left her stomach._

_Everything from that point happened in a blur. Nashi stormed forward and slammed her fist full of fire into the villain's face, angry and terrified tears pouring down her cheeks. Ryos slid forward and cradled March in his arms, sobbing," It should've let him attack me first. It should've been me!"_

_"N-no R-Ryos-s-s..." The little girl coughed, blood dribbling down from her lips. _

_The dark haired boy shook his head and hugged her tightly," Nashi! Nashi, come here! I need you!" The girl stood shakily over the opponent, still punching in his face. As much as he deserved it, Ryos growled," NASHI, COME HERE."_

_She flinched and turned to him, her brown eyes rimming red," B-But he-"_

_"She's still alive; take her to the guild hall __now__."_

_"What about you-"_

_"I have to leave. T-they were here for me, and it's my fault that this happened. If I return to Fairy Tail, they'll just kick me out. I...I can't deal with that. It'd be the best if I just left-"_

_Nashi shook her head, praying that she wouldn't lose two friends in one night. Her worst fears were confirmed when her friend stood up and placed the frail looking six year old in her arms," Go. Run before it's too late," He let out a choked sob and placed a hand on March's head, rubbing her hair gently," Take care of her for me."_

_The fire dragon slayer shook her head no, watching in horror as he turned and left the alleyway," Don't leave, Ryos! You're my best friend!"_

_"You're better off without me in your lives."_

_Then he was gone. Nashi's lip trembled as she cried, holding the little girl like she was a life preserver. She wanted to follow Ryos's instructions so badly, but she couldn't bring herself to move her feet," HELP! HELP US, PLEASE!"_

_"Nashi?"_

_The 11 year old could barely look up as Gray, Juvia, Winter, and Aqua entered the alley. Someone tried to take March from her, but Nashi was screaming so much that they had to rip the two away from eachother. Once March was gone, the brown eyed girl collapsed, pounding her fist onto the ground and shrieking. She felt Gray pick her up and tell his wife something about taking them to the Guild. _

_Instead of complaining about how embarrassing being held was like she usually would, Nashi gripped the edge of his jacket and continued to cry. When they finally reached the guild, she felt Gray set her down on a bench and look her in the eye," I'm sorry I have to do this, but March is in too bad of shape. I need to know; what happened?"_

_"W-where's my parents?"_

_The ice Mage sent a desperate glance over to Max, who nodded and exited," Don't worry, they're on their way. Can you please tell me what happened?"_

_"I-it was an ambush. They tried to kill Ryos and I, but I defeated my half. R-Ryos almost did, but March stepped in front of one his attacks and...and he..." Fresh tears began to pour out again," He ran away because he thought he'd get kicked out of Fairy Tail. W-we need to find him before it's too late!" She launched forward and hugged him, feeling that if she let go. She'd float away. _

_Gray coughed awkwardly and patted her back," Don't worry; everything will be alright. March and Ryos will be okay."_

_Nashi opened her eyes, only to see Master Makarov standing in front of her. Everyone knew that his condition wasn't top notch anymore, and his age was finally catching up to him. She squeezed Gray tighter when she saw the fury in her master's eyes," Great-grandpa?"_

_"He was right not to return, because he won't be welcomed back," He growled," Anyone who hurts or betrays my children will not be forgiven, especially if they think running away will solve their problems. Ryos is a traitor."_

_Gray turned around and faced his master in shock," Master, don't you think you're overreacting-"_

_"Nashi, go to the infirmiry." _

_"Why-"_

_"Now."_

_The 12 year old glanced towards the doors, but there was no sign of her parents. Although she didn't want to go alone, she didn't want to be anymore of a burden on Gray," Winter!"_

_The 12 year old boy looked up in surprise. His mother and sister had gone into the infirmity to help March, and he decided to stay back and help his dad if he needed it. So far, it had just been a bunch of sappy stuff and evidence that lead him to hate Ryos even more than usual. Yet, for some reason, when Nashi asked for his help, he felt his heart break. It was extremely weird to see his least favorite person cry; she looked so helpless. He glanced over at his dad, who nodded in approval. _

_He sighed and walked over to his rival. She was shaking like a leaf and kept looking towards the entrance, desperately hoping for her family. Winter scowled, wondering if that pansy Max was taking his sweet time on purpose. It was because of him that he had to be the one to help the annoying flame brain. With one swipe, the water Mage huffily took Nashi's hand," Let's go."_

_"I didn't tell you to hold my hand," She mumbled, making a half-ass attempt to pull it away. He rolled his eyes and tightened his grip and continued to drag her away, ignoring the blush creeping on his cheeks. Great; the hotheaded freak was causing his body temperature to heat up. _

Nashi didn't remember much else. She could feel herself slipping back into conciousness. The last thing she heard was the first thing she remembered.

_"Don't give in, no matter what!" _

_"I won't, March, I promise! I will never forget him!"_

Nashi bit back a sob; she had forgotten. They wiped her memories.

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><p><strong>Wow, that turned out to be a way longer chapter than usual. If you're confused, Ryos ran away from Fairy Tail because he almost killed March. That's why he's been pushing everyone away and why no one can remember him. Once again, I'm curious to see who your favorite character is, so comment below! (Hehe, I like writing young Winter. He's kind of bratty.) Thanks for reading!<strong>


	7. Chapter 7 The Dragon

**I'm going to have a foreword for this chapter! Okay, so I'm bringing in an old character in this chapter from the first chapter! Do you think you can guess who it is? Hehe. **

**I don't own Fairy Tail**

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><p>Usually, Onyx viewed himself as a very level headed person that could keep calm in any situation. He had gained his adoptive father's attitude from growing up with him, and it had suited him just fine until this moment.<p>

It was extremely hard to stay sane when two of his teammates (the only two with healing powers and bright attitudes) had left. To add to the pressure of the situation, Nashi had completely passed out for an unknown reason and is now refusing to wake up. If that wasn't bad enough, Ryos and Lutz were arguing about the silhouette of a dragon and who should go fight it. His patience was wearing thin.

The dark haired boy drummed his fingers on his cheeks and patiently waited for the fire dragon slayer to wake up. The others had obviously forgotten about the girl, so Onyx had taken it upon himself to keep an eye on her. The two had never been the closest of friends, but he cared a lot more about her than he let on; she was the one who often stood up for March and looked after her. Onyx had always thought of the sky dragon slayer as a little sister and was extremely protective of her, so to have Nashi be the younger girl's friend meant a lot to him. He thought of watching Nashi while she couldn't defend herself was a way to make it up to both of them. Unfortunately, it was boring, and he soon began to eavesdrop on the boys' conversation.

"I think that we should gather the others, have Detox heal Nashi, and neutralize the threat together," Lutz pressed, his eyes flicking to his best friend to see if he had his support.

Onyx nodded in agreement," We'll be stronger together than apart."

"We don't have time for that," the 19 year old mumbled," It won't be holding off in that canyon for much longer. Someone needs to at least weaken."

"And you're suggesting that you do it?" The blonde snorted," Do you honestly think you're powerful enough to defeat a dragon all by yourself? Last time I checked, you haven't even made S-class yet."

"You haven't either," Onyx pointed out.

His friend ignored his comment and continued," We'll be stronger as a team!" He watched as Ryos rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in defeat," Fine! If you honestly think that you're too strong for us and don't need our help, go and get yourself killed! It'll be your fault."

Onyx saw the red eyed boy flinch at his words," You don't get it, do you?"

"What? What could I possibly be missing?"

"I don't expect to survive."

"Exact-wait, what?" Lutz squinted his eyebrows," You want to die?"

"Of course I don't," He responded sharply," Out of everyone here, I'm the one who deserves it the most. I almost killed M-someone. I've brought nothing but bad luck and bad memories to the people around me. The only person that likes me is Detox. If I die...it won't be important."

Onyx narrowed his eyebrows, anger pulsing through him. Before he knew what came over him, he shot up like a bullet and grabbed the collar of Ryos's shirt," You can't just throw your life away! You are just as important as us, if not more! That bullshit you said about no one liking you is crap! March adores you! I used to look up to you when I was younger, and I still do! You were the first person that wasn't Lutz or Rogue to except me when my dad adopted me! Everyone else thought it was weird or that Rogue was just recruiting, but you just took one look at me and said _You'll be a tough opponent, kid._ Then you shook my hand. I am proud to call you my friend, no matter what you've done. You know why? It's because now I know that you're the same 12 year old kid that wanted to become S-class more than anything. You can try to bury that, but it's not gonna happen. You're stuck with yourself, so I will not let you kill yourself! We're going to fight it _together_ because we're a _team_!"

"But-"

"No fucking buts. You said it yourself; There's only five of us that have a chance in defeating it. Back out now, and you're giving yourself a death sentence. I don't care how many people you may have killed or if you go by Edge now, we're in this together. There's no backing out and no room for cowards. Got it?"

The two held eye contact until Ryos snickered," That is the most I've heard you talk," The shadow dragon slayer mumbled _damn straight _under his breath before releasing his comrade and stepped back," How do you remember me if Squirt and Nashi don't? Do you know what happened to them?"

Lutz, who had just recovered from the shock of hearing his friend say more than one sentence, frowned," I dunno. I remember you just fine. I figured that you just did something to piss them off. Is it true you murdered three guild members?"

"What? No. That's just a rumor."

"So I'm guessing the one about you turning into a dragon is fake too."

"Of course it is! Who comes up with this shit?"

Onyx smiled; this was the Ryos he remembered. He always knew that there was something fishy about the rumors, but he allowed himself to believe them when the guy tried to kidnap them. His belief quickly dissolved into fury when he began threatening March. It comforted him that his new attitude had mostly been an act. The only thing left was to find out why he had to pretend he was the bad guy.

The 18 year old slipped back into his nonchalant mood, relieved that the two had finally stopped fighting," Alright, so here's the plan. We go find March and Detox and prepare for battle. If it looks like one of us is going to lose, we back out and go find help. No one will die," He added.

The two boys nodded and followed the directions that he had given them. It was fairly easy to follow March's scent, and in a matter of a minutes, they had reached the makeshift camp.

Detox and March hopped up to greet them," Did the demon come? Is everyone okay? Did you defeat it?"

"There's a dragon," Ryos responded grimly," We're going to have to fight it."

"We're going to do it together," Lutz added confidently," If we work as a team, there is no feat we can't accomplish."

Onyx laid out their plan," We saw the dragon go into a canyon nearby, so we'll have to attack from above. Lutz and I will do a duel attack while Ryos and March attack it from behind and underneath. Detox, you stay on the sidelines; we can't have you getting hurt. Anyways, if you stay there, you can heal anyone that gets hurt."

March beamed, glad to finally be treated like an adult," What will Nashi do?"

"If we give her a game plan, she'll just ignore it," Lutz explained," Therefore, we're going to let her do whatever."

"Did Nashi stay back to keep an eye on the dragon?"

Realization hit Onyx in the head like a brick," Shit, we forgot Nashi!"

Detox's jaw dropped," What? How? What happened?"

"She fell unconscious soon after you guys left!" The shadow dragon slayer explained," I was supposed to be keeping an eye on her, but I forgot! I left her helpless at a dragon's doorstep! We have to find her before it does!"

"Let's split up," Ryos commanded," Lutz and Onyx, head back to the place that we last saw her on the road. Detox and March, scour the forest area around it; she may have gone looking for us. I'll go check the canyon."

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Nashi had to admit; this was an idiotic plan.

Sure, she knew that there was no way that she'd be able to defeat the dragon all by herself. Heck, she didn't even know if her dad could. Yet, when she was ripped from her memories, the first thing she heard was Ryos say that someone needed to at least weaken it, and she was the perfect person for the job.

The pinkette sighed and rubbed her arm; Doing this would probably be just as dangerous as jumping in front of a firing squad, but she couldn't let Ryos do it for her. He had been through enough. Nashi, on the other hand, had lived a semi-full life with a loving guild and family. She needed to make sure Ryos got the chance to live the life she did.

With one deep breath, she hopped into the canyon, landing roughly on her feet. Much to her surprise, there was no dragon visible. Now, despite being a pyromaniac that usually acted before thinking, Nashi noticed a few things; the air was much hotter than it would normally be, and she could hear a hoarse hum echoing against the walls. She was not alone.

Nashi narrowed her eyes and ignited her fists," I don't know what you are, but I have nothing to be afraid of it you're too cowardly to even show yourself. Not only that, but because of you, my friends' lives are being threatened. I won't stand for that."

She heard a snicker," The victim with pink hair and the fiery eyes, the last one meant to die. Are you intending to defeat me or kill yourself, because you're going to die either way."

"I doubt that," Nashi snorted," Show yourself so we can get this over with."

Suddenly, the invisibility spell wore off, revealing the most frightening image she had ever seen; a giant dragon that was the same size of the guild hall stood in front of her with pitch black scales, blood-red eyes. It had what seemed like three rows of razor sharp teeth and hot breath that could melt steel. It's wings were long and skeletal, giving the dragon the image of a monster.

The dragon slayer's eyes widened in terror. From the stories her dad had told her, dragons were beautiful and graceful creatures, but this _thing _carried an air of death and destruction with it. Nashi mustered up all the courage could and increased the powers of her flames. The dark creature leered down at her, the same way a spider would look at a fly," Let's begin."

She jumped into the air and waved her arms, spouting fire out of them," Fire dragon wing attack!"

Much to her frustration, her attack didn't penetrate his armor of scales. Nashi growled and tried her next attack," Fire dragon flamethrower!" The offensive move had the same affect as her first one. She bit her lip, trying to find a weak spot. Suddenly, it hit her; the wings! They seemed paper thin and easily flammable!

This time, Nashi was the one smirking," Fire dragon Brilliant flame!" The attack shot her off the ground and rocketed towards the enemy," Fire dragon roar!" The fire shot out of her lips and straight towards the wings. While they didn't burst into flames like she had hoped they would, they bruised. The dragon rose his eyebrow at her, a mixture of impressment and bitter hatred evident in his features.

Nashi landed gracefully on her feet again, feeling slightly more confident than earlier. She held out her hands and charged the dragon," Fire dragon Firework!" Spark-like fire balls shot from her fingers and attached themselves to the dragon's eyes, ears, and wings. In a matter of seconds, they all exploded, causing the dragon to recoil.

She would've celebrated her successful move if she didn't catch the look on the beast's face. The blood dripping from it's eyes and ears reminded her way too much of the demon child, and the livid expression on it's face was extremely unsettling.

Nashi decided to attack while he was recovering. She jumped back into the air and prepared to make her final move, cupping her hands around her lips," Fire dragon-"

Out of nowhere, a giant claw swatted her out of the way and catapulted her into the rock wall. Pain shot through her body like a dozen tiny knives. The impact of his mere swat and caused enough power for her to leave an indent in the canyon and probably broke a few of her ribs. Nashi groaned and felt herself slip out of the crater her body made and drop two stories down onto the ground.

Nashi clenched her teeth, trying to ignore the constant pain stabbing her stomach as she forced herself onto her feet. The furious look on the dragon had faded into amusement again, fuelling her to feel even more destructive," If you think I'm going to give up, you've got another thing coming. In fact, I have a fire in my belly!" Before it could react, she finished the attack she had started earlier," FIRE DRAGON ROAR!"

Flames erupted from her mouth and shot directly at the dragon with enough power to send him into the wall behind him. Nashi smiled in relief, pride rushing over her. With one move, she had sent a dragon flying backwards. It was probably the most powerful spell she had ever cast.

Unfortunately, it wasn't powerful enough.

The monster quickly got back onto it's feet and swiped at Nashi again, slamming her into the ground. She squeaked in surprise, shock quickly morphing into pain again. She gritted her teeth and tried to ignore it and she shakily got on her feet. That seemed to be the wrong move, though, because the dragon picked her up in his fist and held her up to eye level, murder evident in his irises," Are you prepared to die, weakling?"

She tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he was faster and strong than she could ever hope to be. He snickered darkly and held her above his jaws before promptly dropping her inside.

Nashi shrieked as she entered his mouth, quickly fighting her way out. Molten hot saliva covered her skin, making it hard to escape. She took a deep breath and jumped out just before he close his lips, free-falling towards the ground. Just before she hit the dirt, he bent down and chomped on her right leg.

She screamed, a pain much more agonizing than anything she had ever experienced coursing through her entire body. Tears escaped her eyes and blood dripped out of her lips. Nashi aimed her hands at the monster and choked out," Fire dragon's wing attack!" The move packed just enough of a punch for the beast to release her leg and drop her onto the ground.

Breathing was starting to hurt. Keeping her eyes open felt like a chore. She couldn't think. She couldn't move. All she could focus on was the monster she had felt so sure about defeating raising it's giant hand above her seemingly small body, prepared to crush her.

Nashi sobbed; she didn't want to die. She wanted to go home and listen to her mom lecture her about how worried she was. She wanted to do the punishment chores in the kitchen and strain her ears to hear her dad's stories in the living room. She wanted to fight over who go to shower first with Leo. She wanted to cuddle with her kitten, Miles, one last time before heading to bed. She wanted to pretend to be annoyed at her little sister, even though she was extremely proud of the magical potential Igleia contained. She wanted to give up on the idea of getting any sleep in her room and sneak into Aqua's room. She wanted her best friend to refuse to house the pinkette and send her to her brother's room. She wanted Winter to try and kick her out, but instead let her stay like that one time the week before. She wanted to watch one more sunrise.

She squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fists, scared out of her wits. She didn't want to see the foot slam onto her and end her life. Nashi just wanted one more chance.

Before she could process what was happening, the temperature dropped. The stuffy air almost immediately evaporated, replaced by a cool, but comforting feeling. Instead of a monstrous hand crushing her to death, she felt someone roughly wrap their arm around her stomach (she tried to be appreciative, but the thing was crushing her broken ribs) and yank her out of the way," What the hell do you think you're doing!? This isn't the time to take a nap, flame-brain!"

Nashi's eyes fluttered open, the voice all to familiar to her," Winter?"

The dark haired Fullbuster stood in front of her, and expectant look on his face. She wasn't sure if he was an illusion or not, but was answered when he splashed some water on her face," What are you waiting for? Get your lazy ass up and fight this freak!"

Ugh. He was such an asshole sometimes. Nashi sighed and tried to follow his orders, but her body ignores her pleas. Her eyes glossed over in fear as she looked up at her rival," I...I can't move."

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><p><strong>Winter's back! Unfortunately, he's not a dragon slayer, so the two are probably screwed...This arc is about 60% done, and the I've already got the next arc planned. I also may or may not make a Christmas one shot for my 2nd Gen babies, so keep an eye open. (No promises.) Thanks for reading, and Merry ChristmasHonnika/Quanza/Whatever!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	8. Chapter 8 Water Boy

**Hey guys! Since it's winter break where I am, I actually finished my chapter ahead of schedule! I'm going to go ahead and warn you though; Winter is a heavy swearer and a bit of a jerk...gihihi. **

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

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><p>"I...I can't move."<p>

Winter rolled his eyes and roughly threw the girl over his shoulder," Fine! If you're too tired to fight, then I'll throw you somewhere so that you can recover and finish the battle you started," His eyes scanned the wall until they fell upon a small crevice. Finding it suitable, he hauled her inside and sat himself down in front of her," Geez, you really got yourself into something this time."

Nashi bit her lip, trying to hold back the sob that was crawling it's way out of her throat," A-Asshole."

"That's all you got? _Asshole?_ Come on, you can come up with a better insult in your sleep! Try harder."

Frustration took over her body, forcing tears out of her eyes. What didn't he get? She couldn't move at all! Did he think that she was playing around? She darted her gaze at the boy, finally capturing his attention," JUST LOOK AT ME!"

Winter's eyes widened in horror when he fully realized the situation his rival had gotten herself into; her body was covered in bruises and scrapes, her clothes were tattered, and her hair was ratty. None of that compared to what went through his mind when he saw her leg. It was completely covered in blood and the skin was torn. Not only that, but she was crying.

He hated seeing a girl crying.

That was the reason he had set out to find Nashi in the first place. Aqua blamed herself for the girls' disappearance and wouldn't stop sobbing. He figured the only way to make her feel better would to set out to find the girl himself and bring her home so that he could prevent his sister from ever crying again.

When he caught sight of Nashi blankly staring up at the ceiling with tears leaking down the sides of her face, he wanted to puke. This was not the Nashi he despised. This was not Nashi at all. He began shaking without even noticing,"...Nash?"

The pink haired girl squeezed her eyes shut, secretly hoping that everything would fix itself. She carefully listened as Winter scooted closer to her, positioning her head in his lap," You look like sh-" He paused and gazed into her chocolate brown eyes, melting as he did so. He unconsciously used his hand to brush some hair off her cheek," Don't worry; everything's gonna be okay. I promise."

Well. That was completely out of character for him. Nashi choked out a sob and rolled her head into his stomach. He continued to stroke her rosy locks, allowing her to calm down," You have to get out of here before it hurts you," She commanded weakly, knowing all too well that they couldn't hide forever. The dragon would find them eventually and burn them to a crisp without hesitation. Even if he was an ice-prick, she would not drag him into hell with her.

He narrowed his eyes at her," What the Heck?"

With his help, she sat up and furrowed her eyebrows," I told you to make a run for it. I-I'm already mostly dead-"

"Don't fucking say that! The guild would chew me out if I left you here to die! _I _would chew myself out! Do you honestly think I'd be that cruel? Even if we are rivals...I care-I mean-I can stand you. I'm not a complete asshole."

She sniffled, stifling a tiny smile," You're just 86% of an asshole."

Winter smirked in return, wiping some of the tears and blood off her cheeks," Exactly. Now, how 'bout we get out of here before that dragon burns us to a crisp?" She seemed to pale a little bit at the meaningly lighthearted comment," Sorry," he mumbled, not wanting to hurt the girl anymore.

"It's fine," She replied meekly.

Winter frowned and turned around, scooping Nashi up so that she was now on his back. He got on his feet cautiously, balancing his weight with hers. Once she was secure, he turned his head to face hers, accidently brushing his lips against her temple," Hold on, okay? I'm gonna get you out of here."

She was glad he couldn't see her blush.

He nodded confidently, reminding Nashi way too much of the cockiness she had obtained a mere ten minutes ago," Please be careful. It's really strong."

"I can tell. An easy opponent wouldn't be able to rough you up that badly," Winter replied plainly," Ready to go?"

"...no."

"Too bad!" He laughed, bursting out of the cave and back into the canyon. The dragon eyed them quickly and swatted, but Winter ducked just in time. The attack missed the duo by a hair. The Fullbuster exhaled in relief and took off to find an exit of any sorts," Nashi, how are you holding up?"

She wasn't there. He dropped her," Shit!" The water Mage spun around and slid down to the girl, displeased to find he had accidentally knocked her out. In one fluid motion, he placed her back on his back and used the minimal amount of ice magic he knew to meld her wrists together so that she couldn't slip off again.

Once she was secure, Winter ran again. He could feel the dragon close on their heels, and if he was a dragon slayer, he'd turn back and beat the crap out of the monster to show off-the Fullbuster stopped short. What? Show off? To who? Nashi? He snickered. That would embarrass her. The look on her face would be priceless!

Apparently he had been stalling too long, because the dragon swiped down at them and yanked them off the ground. The dark haired boy swore and glared at the beast," What the hell do you think you're doing?" The dragon ignored him and tried to pry the girl away from Winter," Hey! Stay away from her!" He had shifted Nashi around so that he was now holding her against his chest," I said STAY AWAY FROM HER! WATER SLICER!"

Shards of water powerful enough to cut metal flew at the dragon's fingers, causing it to recoil and drop them. Unfortunately, this also meant that the two were free-falling towards the earth at an incredible speed. Winter groaned and aimed his hands towards the ground," Water-lock!"

The two plopped into the giant bubble without a scratch. The Mage felt comforted by the coolness surrounding him, but was rudely reminded of the girl's presence when she started choking. Winter rolled his eyes and swam out of the side, making sure that he was below her to cushion her fall. The two made it out just in time, because the dragon smashed his (perfectly made) water lock and drenched the duo in water.

Nashi sputtered the water out of her mouth," W-What the hell? I'm c-c-c-cold."

The water-Mage shifted the girl so that he was holding her in his arms (breaking her fall left a pretty mark on his back that would definitely bruise) and took refuge behind a rock," The dragon's pissed."

The brown eyed girl nodded wearily and hugged him closer. Now that she was awake, the guilt was eating her alive," That's probably my fault..."

"Nah, I think it's just violent in general-SHIT, IT FOUND US!" He spun the girl around so that she was on his back again and dove out of the way," This thing is relentless!"

The boy backed up until the two were against a wall. Damnit, they were cornered. The dragon smirked and approached them slowly, teasing his prey. Winter cursed and tightened his grip on the girl, trying excruciatingly hard to hide the fear in his voice," Nashi, if we somehow get out of this, I'm going to bug you about it for the rest of your life."

"Gee, thanks Storm-cloud."

Storm cloud? His eyes widened in realization; steam. Water evaporated, especially in heat," Heat-feet, I've got an idea."

"Does it involve living?"

"Yup."

"I'm all ears."

"I need you to blast my legs with your fire."

She would've protested, but he was slowly shoving her against the wall and a dragon was preparing to eat them alive. Nashi gathered up the last of her magic," Let's do this; Fire dragon's roar!"

Winter turned his lower half into water as the attack hit them, causing them to turn into steam like he had predicted. _Please let this work_, he prayed.

_Please let this work, _She willed.

The water mage felt his body begin to tip backwards. Shit. He hit his legs, and since his legs were at the bottom of his body...they were going up upside down," Crap, hold on!" Winter slid her around as quickly as he could and held onto her waist with a death grip. She returned the favor by practically choking him.

On the bright side, they were going up. Nashi was too jittery to feel any relief whatsoever, so she didn't release him even when they were back on solid ground. Despite being safe now, black dots were already smudging her eyes. She smiled weakly up at her rival before letting her mind rest and passing out.

Winter felt the girl go limp as soon as he touched solid ground, a similar feeling clouding his brain. Without any warning, he went weak in the knees and blacked out.

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Ryos was having a panic attack. He had finally gotten most of his problems straightened out for the time being, but everything was ruined when Nashi disappeared. To say he was worried was an understatement.

It didn't help that when he finally stumbled upon the fire dragon slayer, she was with another Fairy Tail member and unconscious. He briefly wondered if the boy attempted to kidnap her, but turned that idea away when he saw the state they were in.

They had attempted to fight the dragon. Ryos's blood began to boil. He stormed over and shoved the two awake with his boot," What the hell were you-Fullbuster?!"

Winter groggily sat up, hauling Nashi with him," Redfox? You're alive?"

"You honestly think I'm weak enough to die?" He responded rudely. His eyes scanned the bruises that littered their bodies," Don't tell me you tried to fight the dragon."

The pink haired girl turned bright Crimson," I was just trying to help-"

"By what? Getting yourself killed? I knew you were stupid, but I didn't think you were completely idiotic!"

"Hey, no one can call her an idiot but me!" The water Mage retorted.

Ryos snorted," I'm surprised. You two used to hate each other-"

"We still do."

"-and now he's standing up for you? What happened when I was gone?"

Winter narrowed his eyes at the boy and grumbled," I can't believe you. You were her best friend."

"She doesn't remember that-"

"Yes, I do," She stated. The two boys stared at her in confusion, pushing her to continue," I regained my memories when I passed out the first time."

"First time? How many times have you fallen unconscious?" Winter teased, earning a shove from his rival.

Ryos ignored the blue eyed boy and questioned her," How much do you remember?"

"Well...I remember that we were friends and that we were walking March home one night. We were ambushed, and you accidentally hurt March because she stepped in front of an attack. You got scared so you left me alone without any way to save her...I screamed for help, but you didn't come back."

"How did you save her?"

"We were back from a family mission," Winter responded," and we found the two in pretty bad shape. We took them back to the guild hall, where Wendy set to work to try and heal her daughter."

Nashi stared at the grass," Master Makarov said something about wanting me to go to the infirmiry, and Water-boy here accompanied me. I don't remember much after that."

"He locked the door, knocked me out, and wiped your memories. Then he said he was going on a walk. We found him dead the next morning," He growled.

Ryos furrowed his eyebrows in confusion," That's impossible. I saw great-gramp's corpse just as I reached the border of Magnolia. I wanted to try and get help, but he was long gone...there is no way he could've done all that and beat me to my destination. Where did they find the body?"

The duo shared worried looks," They never told us."

"He couldn't have been in two places at once, right? Not only that, but it's on the same night that the dark guild attacked us," the steel dragon slayer's fury seemed to disappear into thin air, replaced by curiosity," Why would whoever was behind all of that want to erase me from the guild?"

Winter ran a hand through his hair," I dunno. I remember you being a self-centered son of a-"

"It's not the time to trade insults, Wishy-Wave," the brown eyed girl warned, seeming incredibly intimidating for a badly injured person. He rolled his eyes but didn't follow up on her comment, silently giving her permission to get back on subject," Okay, so Great-gramps was in two places at once, erased both March and I's memories, and stated that he'd never let you rejoin the guild. What does all of this mean?"

"I think we're in deeper shit than we thought," Ryos turned his attention to Nashi's leg and cringed," We should head back to camp and heal you before we do anything else. Can you carry her, Fullbuster?"

He nodded confidently and demonstrated," Yup. I've got it covered."

"Good. I assume that if the dragon hasn't come out yet, it's not going to follow us."

"I burned it's wings," Nashi commented," It's not going anywhere."

Ryos chuckled," Of course, I'd expect nothing less from you. Follow me."

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><p><strong>Alright, the next chapter will have March and Detox in it, and the chapter after that will have Lutz and Onyx. There are only about 4 chapters left in this arc, then there will be a semi-short filler arc including one of the new team's teammates (I won't spoil who the team is yet). If you're still reading this, go and check out my older brother's fanfiction, <em>Ruby Pheonix.<em> It is an OC guild, but it is extremely funny! (Juliet is the character I suggested for him, so she's naturally one of my favorites.) Thanks for reading!**

**-uprisingdragon**


	9. Chapter 9 Demon from the Dark Part 1

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

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><p>Detox decided early on that March was his favorite. The young girl was so cheery and mature that it was hard not to like her. It was no wonder Ryos was so fond of her; she was absolutely precious. To make matters even better, she acted very ladylike for someone her age. He discovered early on that he enjoyed spending time with her, and soon, conversation came easy to them," I hope that Nashi-san is okay. I wish Ryos-san would've let me stay; I could've helped when she passed out."<p>

The purple haired boy shrugged," I wish I could've stayed too, but Ryos knows what he's doing. If he thought that you staying behind would've put you in danger, it's better that you followed his orders."

"I know. Do you think that she'll be okay?"

"Of course! This is Nashi we're talking about. Anyways, if she actually is in trouble, I know that Ryos won't give up until he finds her."

"Neither will Lutz; he has a huge crush on her," March giggled," We need to find him a girlfriend before Winter gets jealous and murders him."

"Winter? Who is Winter? Don't tell me that the hyperactive pink haired pyromaniac landed herself a boyfriend!"

The 13 year old grinned dreamily," He's Gray Fullbuster's son and Nashi-san's soulmate. He just doesn't know it yet."

"Does she know it?"

"Nope," She replied, popping the _p_," You see, Mira-san taught me the ways of _shipping_."

Detox rose his eyebrow," What's shipping? Is it a demon power of something?"

The dark haired girl giggled again," No! Shipping is when you put two people together that you think would be a good couple. For example, I ship Nashi and Winter. Do you ship anyone?"

"Uh, one of the only people I know is Ryos, and I am positive that he isn't capable of being in a relationship."

"Is it because you think he's mean? I know that he's a good person-"

"If I didn't think he was a good person, I would've ditched him years ago," Detox interrupted," Ryos just believes that if he lets anyone in, they'll get hurt. For example, both you and Nashi are really important to him, but he thinks that if he is nice to you guys, Clone Wyvren-shit, I wasn't supposed to say that."

"What is-"

"Drop the subject."

March furrowed her eyebrows. This was obviously a touchy subject for the usually light person, which could only mean one thing; they were the reason Ryos was who he was now. Could they be part of the group that attacked them?

She froze. Attack? What attack? March took a deep breath and rubbed her hair, the ticklish feeling from earlier returning. Instead of flickering off like it did earlier, it intensified," Hey, Detox-san?"

"I said to drop-"

"My head feels funny."

The healer stopped so fast that he tripped over his own feet. March tried to rushed forward and steady him, but ended up recoiling and clutching her head again. The boy regained his balance and spun around to face his companion. She turned to face him, her eyes glossy with un-shed tears," I was attacked? What does it mean? When was I attacked?" Her hand strayed to her stomach," Detox, what's happening to me?"

Detox's eyes widened; if she had dropped the formalities while addressing him, something was definitely wrong," Don't panic. Take deep breaths," he carefully took her hands in his. She whimpered and leaned her forehead onto his," It'll be okay, March. I'm right here. Do you want to tell me what's happening? I promise I won't snap at you like I did earlier. You're in a safe enviorment."

Without warning, the younger girl's legs gave out and she collapsed, crying as the pain intensified itself even more than earlier," Ryos-san! Ryos-san!" The ebony eyed boy gently grabbed the girl and sat her up, trying to coax her to open her eyes. The girl only responded in screams," RYOS-SAN!"

Suddenly, March went limp and passed out in his arms. Detox frowned anxiously, frightened for her safety. Why would she be calling for Ryos? Why did she seem so scared? Did she see something that he hadn't? Was there some sort of dragon-slayer connection between them that he didn't have? Did something happen? He prayed that his friend hadn't gone to defeat the dragon by himself, because no matter how strong Ryos was, there was no way he'd be able to defeat it by himself.

No. Ryos wasn't that stupid. Detox rubbed his temples wearily and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. The pressure of the situation was finally caving in on him. He had fought dark guilds and destroyed bandits time after time with Ryos. This should be nothing to him.

This time was different, though. For the first time in his life, he was scared that his best friend would do something risky and lose his life. He was also worried about the people he had met the day before. He felt responsible for them because he had been the one to convince his partner to retrieve them, and if something bad happened...Detox rubbed his eyes; he didn't want to be alone again. He couldn't handle that. It was bad enough that his own parents didn't want him.

The 19-year-old was forced from his thoughts when he felt March squeeze one of his hands. He stared down at her unconscious form, ultimately deciding that he wasn't going to allow anything to happen to them. He may just be a support magic user, but he wasn't weak. Eventually, the anxiety consuming his mind trickled away. The healer smiled in relief and squeezed her hand back," Thanks, Tiny. I really needed that."

With a sigh, Detox positioned the kid so that her head was on his lap. Once she seemed comfortable, he leaned back and waited for her to wake up. If there was something going on in her head, moving her could cause serious damage.

The boy turned his attention to the clear sky, pondering if whatever happened to March was similar to what Nashi went through earlier. It wouldn't be shocking. From what he had seen and heard about Fahrenheit, practically nothing could take the girl down. He doubted that someone would be able to take her down with brute force. Heck, if she actually did go to conquer the dragon, she probably would be okay.

He glanced back down at March and rubbed her hair, a calm aura hugging him. Despite the looming danger, he knew that everything would be okay.

His serenity was interrupted when he heard a twig crack. Detox groaned in annoyance," Looks like I was wrong."

The boy slowly pulled out his boomerang, preparing to strike. His eyes skimmed the area and pushed himself to his feet so that he was standing protectively over March. They were not alone.

He growled (a habit that he had picked up from his grouchy friend) and poised himself for battle," Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

Just like that, the slight advantage of intimidation he had evaporated.

The boy sweat-dropped," Where's Ryos when you need him-" Out of nowhere, a giant, pitch black monster jumped from it's hiding spot and tackled him onto the ground. The thing was at least twice the size of Detox. It looked like a hound made entirely out of shadow-like dots with pointed teeth and blood red eyes.

The purple haired boy grimaced and kicked the beast off of him, quickly getting back to his feet and whipping his boomerang out," What the hell are you?" He didn't miss the brief glance the hell-hound gave to March, and suddenly, all the pieces put themselves together. The shadow creature was after the girl, just like the demon child had been the previous night (despite trying to hide the attack from him, Detox put the nightmares and the girl's disappearance together. He wasn't an idiot).

The dark eyed boy glared at the hell-hound," I know why you're here. If you think that'll you'll get away with this, you've got another thing coming."

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"NASHI!" Lutz yelled, worry swelling in his chest," NASHI, COME OUT!" He frowned and turned to Onyx, who seemed even more guilty than the blonde was. His friend obviously blamed himself for the girl's abrupt disappearance.

The blue eyed boy stuffed his hands in his pockets, wondering for the thousandth time why he'd gone ahead with this mission. He couldn't defeat a dragon. Heck, he couldn't even look after the people he cared for. The only good thing that came out of it so far was March's blooming confidence, and that hardly affected him. Lutz could see the toll that the mad-cap-hunt was taking on his buddies. If it didn't take a turn for the better soon...the blonde sighed.

His eyes flickered over to Onyx, who was searching in a bush," I doubt she's in there," He smirked. The dark haired dragon slayer snorted and stood up straight, inching his way farther from the spot and into the sunlight. Lutz's eyes in realization," Hey, the dye's wearing off. You're hair's fading green...speaking of that, why is your name Oynx? Isn't that a shade of black?"

"I didn't name myself."

The white dragon slayer almost slapped himself; why did he constantly forget that his best friend was adopted? Probably because both of Rogue's adopted kids fit into Sabertooth so well," Right. Sorry. I just-" He paused, an all too familiar chill creeping up his spine. He's felt this before," Oh god."

Onyx furrowed his eyebrows," What? What's wrong?"

"She's here."

"What-"

"Listen."

"The youngest of fourth was the first to go, I embodied and buried her in woe. The second fourth is the blonde with a beam, but my evil grasp only reached him in dreams. The third little girl with the dark blue hair, is the next victim to be caught in my snare," The ink eyed girl stalked out of the shadows, a leer creeping onto her face," Where is the child?"

Lutz stepped forward," What do you want with-"

"You're not going to get either of them," A surprisingly dark voice growled. The blonde flipped around, only to see his cool-headed best friend surrounded by a dark aura. His face screamed nothing but bloody murder," You're aiming to hurt the people I care about. I may not be from Fairy Tail, but nakama is just as important to me as it is to them."

The demon girl tilted her head at an unnatural level," Fairy Tail wizards are strong. Why would you compare yourself to one? Are you hoping to become one?"

His fists erupted in shadows," Not at all. You see, Fairy Tail has this unspoken rule about not killing anything," Onyx intensified his glare," Sabertooth has no such rule."

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The beast lunged at Detox, missing him by a millimeter. In response, the purple haired boy chucked his boomerang, only to have it swatted onto the ground. The boy frowned and dove to retrieve it, but was pounced on before he could reach his destination.

The hell-hound snapped at his head, causing him to slam on the ground in order to avoid it. Detox balled up his fist and socked the monster in (what he assumed was) the jaw. It recoiled, but didn't release him. Instead, it only tightened his hold on the healer and roared," March! Get up already so you can get help!"

He turned his head to attempt to see if she had awaken, but the monster only swatted his head back to it's original position, slicing his chin in the process. He yelped in surprise and tried to pry his hand from underneath the beast so that he could keep the wound from bleeding.

The shadow beast snarled and hopped up, forcing it's paws into Detox's gut. He choked out a cry and hugged his stomach; He could already identify at least one broken rib. It hurt like hell.

He spat some blood out of his mouth and attempted to slide out from underneath the hell-hound. It only took a growl from his enemy to make him stop and curl into a ball. _Why, dad? Why did you have to be in jail? Why couldn't you stay with Mom so that she wouldn't give me up for adoption? _Detox felt the monster grab his arm with it's teeth and drag him towards a bush, but he was too numb to care. He didn't have a chance against this thing.

The purple haired boy wearily glanced at his boomerang; he was approaching it fast. Maybe, if he was quick enough, he could reach the weapon and free himself. It was worth a shot.

With one swipe, the boy grasped the wooden object and swung it up to hit the beast in it's temple. It whined and released him, giving him just enough time to hop back onto his feet and throw his boomerang at it. This time, the object hit the hell-hound.

As his weapon came back, Detox realized that he couldn't life his arm to catch it. Dammit, he had been so focused on defeating the monster to remember that it had crunched his arm in an attempt to drag him away.

The boomerang flew right past him and vanished into the forest," Man, today just isn't my day. First I find out that my best friend wants to fight a dragon, then Nashi disappears, and now I'm probably going to die," He cracked a smile, ultimately deciding that if he was going to go out, he was going to do it in style," Eh, I've had worse."

The hell-hound head butted the healer, slamming him into the tree behind him. White, hot pain shot through his body, blurring his vision. His humorous attitude evaporated, chucking him back into his meek persona," No...March...I have to...I've got to protect her-"

"HEY!"

Detox almost cried in relief," March, go get help..." His voice trailed off when he saw the dark aura emitting off of the usually innocent young girl. Her fists were clenched, her eyes were narrowed, and her mouth was positioned in a dangerous sneer. To put it simply, the girl who saw good in everybody and could do no wrong was _pissed. _

She glared at the beast," Clone Wyvren. You mentioned it earlier, didn't you? Let me guess, it's the dark guild that attacked us all those years ago. That's why Ryos left. He almost killed me."

"March, go get help," Detox hissed.

"I can handle it."

"Ryos said to listen-"

She stomped forward, approaching the two at a scarily fast pace," Do I need to repeat myself? I. CAN. FUCKING. HANDLE. IT," The 13 year old paused and softened, preparing for battle," I'm going to make this right, Detox. It's all my fault that this happened," She glowered at the shadow monster and cupped her hands around her lips," SKY DRAGON'S ROAR!"

The hell-hound received a direct hit from the younger girl, sending it flying back. She wasn't done, though; March sped forward and held out her hands," Combination Sky dragon whirlwind gust!" An enormous amount of power burst from the seemingly meek girl, demolishing any hint of the beast.

Detox stared at the girl with wide eyes, completely shocked. It was over. She had defeated it without bashing an eye. Even more surprising, she said fuck. He was right; it was an off day for everyone," M-March?"

The brown eyed girl stood in the same position, breathing heavily," I remember it. I remember it all," Suddenly, she flung herself forward and wrapped her arms around the 19-year-old. He nearly jumped out of his skin, but relaxed when he saw that she was on the verge of tears," P-poor Ryos. It's all m-my fault."

He used his good arm to rub her back," Don't worry; he doesn't blame you."

"He d-doesn't?"

"Of course not! He did it to protect you and Nashi. Ryos cared-cares-a lot about you guys. Honestly, I think that you guys meant more to him than his own siblings," Detox chuckled and changed the subject," You kicked ass back there! You took that hell-hound out in two hits!"

"R-really? It wasn't that hard-oh my Mavis, I swore, didn't I?"

He bit back a laugh at her worried tone," It was hilarious."

"Please don't tell my mom, Detox-san! She'll ground me for a week! She always says that I should be nice to those around me and swearing is not nice-"

The purple haired boy grinned giddily and ruffled her hair," Don't freak out. I promise I won't tell your parents, half-pint."

March shoved him softly," Don't call me tha-your arm. Did that thing hurt you?"

"Not badly. Better me than you."

She frowned and carefully rolled his sleeve up to examine the wound," Don't say things like that."

_"Hey, we found Nashi."_

Detox's eyes widened. Ryos was communicating with him, which meant that he was alright. He released a air he didn't realize he had been holding and tapped into his telepathy skills so that he could respond_," You did? Is she okay?"_

"What's wrong?" March questioned, using the minimal amount of support magic she knew to heal him.

"I'm talking to Ryos."

"Ah, telepathy."

_"She's alive."_

Detox furrowed his eyebrows_," You're leaving something out, aren't you?"_

He could practically see his best friend run his hand through his hair_," You need to get back to camp as soon as possible."_

_"Why? What happened?"_

_"Just get there." _

The connection was abruptly cut off. Detox scowled and turned to the girl, who was watching him carefully. He knew that she was back in her innocent mood, but he also knew that hiding the truth from her would sting," We need to get back to camp. They found Nashi, and I'm pretty sure she's in bad shape."

March's lower lip quivered," Oh my, will she be alright?"

"I don't know, but we should hurry."

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><p><strong>Hey guys! So, we got to see a bit of DetoxMarch action there and got to dig a little deeper into Detox's personality and backstory! Next chapter is going to be about Lutz and Onyx's battle vs. the Demon child, so stay tuned! Thanks for reading!**

**-uprisingdragon**


	10. Chapter 10 Demon from the Dark Part 2

**I do not own Fairy Tail  
><strong>

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><p><em>The demon girl tilted her head at an unnatural level," Fairy Tail wizards are strong. Why would you compare yourself to one? Are you hoping to become one?"<em>

_His fists erupted in shadows," Not at all. You see, Fairy Tail has this unspoken rule about not killing anything," Onyx intensified his glare," Sabertooth has no such rule."_

Lutz's eyes widened," Hold on a minute! You can't be serious about this! We're talking about _murder_ here!"

Unfortunately, his best friend only growled. The blonde ran a hand through his hair. Yes, the world would be safer if this demonic child was wiped out, but that's where the problem came in; she was just a kid. Who knew what was going on inside her head? Then again, it did "kill" him in his nightmare and apparently was after March, who was too meek and friendly to defeat anything threatening.

(Ironically, March was currently beating the shit out of the hell-hound.)

Lutz groaned and stepped forward," Fine. If you think this is the right thing to do, I'm gonna help you do it. I've got your back."

Onyx cracked a grin," It's been awhile since we've had ourselves a real fight, hasn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

The demon child took their conversation as a distraction and lunged forward," Aether manipulation; knives!" Tiny black dots flew out of her hands, forming six giant knives. Even though they were made up of ink (or something), they looked just as sharp as a real sword. She swiped her hand towards the two," Attack!"

Lutz was the first to respond," White dragon dash!" A beam of light faster than sound zipped from his fingertips and slashed through the make-shift weapons," Yes!"

His partner rolled his eyes," Don't get cocky. It's not going to be that easy."

Suddenly, the black dots connected again and reformed the swords. Onyx smugly smirked at his friend before moving to attack them himself," Shadow dragon wing attack!"

If anything, his attack did less damage on them than Lutz's. The demon child snickered at their frail attempts and pointed at the duo," Aether Knife Swipe!" Her weapons followed her command and sped towards the boys. Two of them split apart from the others and glided through his stomach and shoulder.

Lutz screamed in pain and recoiled, checking to see if they created any major wounds. Fortunately, they weren't real knives, so they didn't leave a serious wound," Onyx! They're not real weapo-" He stopped dead when he saw his best friend, crumpled on the ground.

There were six knives. Two of them attacked Lutz, which meant...his eyes widened; Onyx had been ambushed by four.

Any trace of mercy was wiped from Lutz's mind. That _thing_ had tortured his nightmares and planned to hurt March. Now it tried to murder his closest friend. That was a harder blow than any sword, real or fake, could serve. All Onyx had been trying to achieve was protecting his comrades. He only wanted to help.

The white dragon slayer clenched his fists, shaking violently," You're going to pay for that! WHITE DRAGON ROAR!" A blast more powerful than anything he had ever produced sprang from his lips, zoomed straight through the knives, and smacked into the the demon's stomach.

The six weapons disappeared, leaving the spine-chilling sight of the child curled up on the ground, laughing. Her freakish giggles progressively got louder and louder, until Lutz had his hands over his ears to block it out," Shut up!"

She chuckled," Why stop? Would you rather have me roar?" The blue eyed boy's eyes widened in horror, praying that she wasn't implying what he thought she was," So be it. Aether Dragon's Roar!" A blast of dark blue-ish-black air spurted from her mouth and slammed into him. The force was so powerful it sent him flying into the tree trunk behind him.

He swore and clutched his knee, too numb to be terrified. It was a dragon slayer. That _thing _was a _fucking _dragon slayer. How was that even possible? There weren't any dragons around anymore, so she couldn't be a 1st generation slayer. Could there be a lacrima implanted in her? It wouldn't be surprising.

That brought up his next question; how could she have a lacrima inside of her at such a young age? Even worse, she was a demon spawn. Was all of this even possible? Lutz clenched his teeth and pushed himself up, using the trunk for support," I think I preferred your stupid ass laugh-" He froze halfway through the sentence in shock. Was the demon panting?

"Let me out! Let me out! Let me out!" A lighter voice pierced from the child," **No. Give up and go back in. **No! Let me out! **Stay in. **LET ME OUT!" The thing seemed to be fighting itself at this point. Her hands were tugging out her salmon hair and her legs were kicking frantically," LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!"

Her screams yanked Onyx from his unconscious state and brought him up to his feet. no doubt that he had heard the demon and thought she was attacking March," What's going on?"

"It's a dragon slayer, and now it's fighting with itself...I think," The blonde responded slowly, still trying to process what was going on," Should we do something?"

The dark eyed boy ignored his question," How the hell is it a dragon slayer?!"

"I don't know, probably a lacrima," Lutz was interrupted by a high pitched scream, making him jump. She sounded like she was in pain. Wait, why did he care? That thing had tried to kill him, even if it was in a dream. Then again, there was something about her...he groaned," Should we help her? It sounds like she's in trouble...or insane...Onyx, I need your opinion on this, I'm not good at making decisions," Suddenly, the screeching stopped. The demon child shakily got back onto her feet, leering in triumph," Uh, are you okay little girl?"

The deep, corrupt voice was the one to respond," She is back in her cell, never to come back out again."

"Who is _she?_"

"Don't try and talk to it," Onyx warned darkly," The thing we're talking to has no conscious or feelings. Trying to negotiate would be futile."

"Back to fighting, then?"

"Yup."

Their response seemed to please the monster-child, because it grinned wickedly," Aether manipulation-" She lurched back and grasped her heart, coughing up the black fluid that clouded her eyes and mouth,"...My hound...it's been defeated. My knives...also gone. My power...draining fast," She choked out more ink," Shouldn't have used...dragon slayer...magic...not powerful enough...to keep her in..." Without warning, the demon looked up at the duo," Kill me."

Lutz sputtered," Wait, what?!"

"Kill me! Run me through! Do me in! DO IT NOW!"

"No way-," His eyes fell on Onyx, who had pulled out his dad's sword and was approaching the devil-girl. Without hesitation, Lutz launched himself onto the dark haired boy and tackled him onto the ground," What are you thinking?!"

The shadow dragon slayer narrowed his eyes," I'm not going to let it slaughter March or you. It won't be expecting us to strike now-"

"Something's not right about all this! We can't kill it, especially if it is asking us."

**"Something's not right about all this! We can't kill it, especially if it is asking us."**

The boys cautiously turned around, only to see a tall warrior, completely made from black dots. It was twice the size of them and was wielding a large, sharp looking sword. It rose it's giant foot, preparing to stomp on them. Lutz frowned," Shit."

**"Shit."**

The duo jumped off of each other and in opposite directions to avoid the warrior's footprint," Oynx, it's mocking me!"

**"Onyx, it's mocking me!"**

"See!"

**"See!"**

The dark haired boy rolled his eyes and aimed an attack at the beast, cloaking it in his dark shadows," Shadow Dragon Strike! Lutz, get over yourself and fight back."

The blonde waited for a few minutes and moaned," Why isn't it mocking you?"

Lutz narrowed his eyes at the warrior, watching it recover from the offensive move and get back to it's feet**," Why isn't it mocking you?"**

"It keeps doing it to me!"

**"It keeps doing it to me!" **

"Onyx!"

**"Onyx!"**

Said boy leaped into the air and formed an ebony claw," Shadow dragon Fury Swipes!" He scratched the dotted-man several times before landing gracefully on his feet," Lutz! Don't stand there like an idiot! Help me!"

"Fine!"

**"Fine!"**

"White Dragon Beam!" A ray of light zipped out of his hands and flew through the warrior, leaving a gaping hole in it's middle.

**"White Dragon Beam!" **Suddenly, the monster copied his move and shot a darker version of his attack straight into Onyx's head.

Lutz's eyes widened in realization; it wasn't copying him to annoy him. It was doing it so that it could absorb his power and reuse it," ONYX!"

**"ONYX!"**

His friend stumbled back onto his feet, clutching his shoulder," Damn."

The blonde decided it might be safer to stay put, seeing that the mimic monster could follow his ever move," Are you alright?"

**"Are you alright?"**

"I'm fine. You've figured out how it works now, right?" He nodded," Good. That means that I'm going to have to fight this thing while you destroy the source of power."

"What's the source of power?" He asked, even though he knew (and dreaded) the answer.

**"What's the source of power?"**

"Can you shut up for a minute?!"

**"Can you shut up for a minute?!"**

Onyx interrupted, far more annoyed than his partner. Honestly, the Eucliffe kid could be incredibly childish sometimes," The demon, dumbass!"

Dang it. Now he had yet another choice to make. Should he try and help the girl or kill the demon? Why did they have to be the same person? If they were two separate people, his life would be way easier. Eventually, Lutz took a deep breath and chose one option randomly, hoping that it would be the right one," I understand, leave it to me."

**"I understand, leave it to me."**

Thankfully, he ignored it and slid underneath the warrior's legs. Once he was clear, the boy bolted over to the nearly unconscious devil-child. After what he saw earlier, he was positive that the girl had conflicting feelings about hurting them and probably had a chip or something controlling her. What was he thinking? He couldn't hurt her! That would be dishonourable. Lutz gently shook her crumpled form," Hey, wake up!"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the behemoth grab Onyx and yank him off the ground**," Hey, wake up!"**

"Lutz, be careful!" His best friend barked, trying to wiggle his way out of the warrior's grip.

"Sorry!"

**"Sorry!"**

The demon cracked a ghost of smile," You can't defeat me...," She breathed out. Even talking seemed to become a labor to her now,"...without killing your friend. The warrior...," She squeezed her eyes shut and writhed in pain,"...m-mimics everything you...d-do..." The coral haired girl clutched her stomach and quietly whimpered," L-let me out."

Lutz cringed; she was right. He couldn't defeat the demon without doing the same to Onyx. In fact, the only way he could destroy the warrior was to-

He gasped, realization washing over himself. In order to win the battle, he'd have to attack himself. The white dragon slayer carefully laid the kid down (thankfully, the warrior did the same to Onyx) and lit his fist up. His partner knew something was up when the monster wasn't attacking him anymore and eyed him suspiciously," What are you planning?"

"The only way to defeat the monster is to inflict my attacks on myself."

**"The only way to defeat the monster is to inflict my attacks on myself-"**

"There is no way in hell I'm letting that happen!"

Lutz winced at his best friend's tone. The Cheney boy had always had a bad temper when it came to protecting his friends," It's the only way."

**"It's the only way."**

This time, the shadow dragon slayer was the one to snap at their enemy," Stop copying my friend! Copy me, for god's sake! I'll take the hit! Just don't make him do this!"

The blue eyed boy's lips pulled up into a sorrowful grin," Once I'm out, you gotta make sure that the little demon is alright. I'm positive that something is controlling her," His smile intensified in confidence as he glanced back at Onyx," Remember what I said to Nashi about not blaming herself? Same goes for you," He could see his friend's eyes glossing over with u shed tears, making his stomach twist in guilt. It was time," Until the next battle, eh? WHITE DRAGON'S HEAVENLY LIGHT!" His hand flashed a bright white, and before his companion could stop him, he thrust his spell into his stomach. The warrior did the same exact thing while mumbling the entire monologue Lutz gave before disaperating in the air.

The dark haired boy sped over to his unconscious friend and began shaking him," Wake up, you did it! You defeated the monster!" No answer. Onyx frowned, even though he had a feeling that Lutz wouldn't wake up so quickly from a move of that intensity. He quickly checked the blonde's pulse, a wave of relief rolling of him. He was okay.

"GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT!" Onyx spun around and was faced with the sight of a black snake crawling it's way out of the demon's throat. Her face was dripping with tears and ink as she shrieked in agony, choking on her own words as the reptile was forced out.

As soon as she was rid of it, the coral haired girl ran behind a tree and started hurling violently. Looks like Lutz was right; she wasn't as bad as he thought she was.

The thing (like all of the demon's creations) was much large than a regular snake would be, but for some reason, this monster seemed much more threatening than the others. It checked it's surroundings before spotting Onyx and _smirking. _

"W-watch out!" A tiny, raspy voice coughed," He's g-going to try and-"

He didn't hear her warning in time, because the snake lashed forward at an unnatural speed and sunk it's fangs into his arm. He instantly felt his body lose it's ability to move, and his consciousness began to slip away. The last thing Onyx saw was the ebony creature preparing to force itself into his mouth.

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The previously possessed child didn't waste any time. Although she only had vague glimpses of who these boys were, she knew that they had just saved her life. It was time to return the favor, no matter how scared she was.

The six year old rushed forward from her hiding spot and grabbed the snake's tail, tossing it up into the air and away from the dark haired boy," I'm not going to let you hurt anyone ever again, Matelija! It's payback time!" The snake hissed angrily and sped towards her, but she was faster," AETHER DRAGON ROAR!"

She was incredibly relieved when her roar had been ridden of the dark fluid that had been clouding her eyes for the past year. Instead, it was a light pink-ish-blue color, just like her parents had taught her. Her attack hit it's mark and sent her captor soaring off into the distance, never to be seen again. Just to be assured, she stuck out her tongue," And stay gone!"

Then she ducked into a bush and puked again.

She was free. Matelija was gone forever. The coral haired girl giggled in delight, coughing slightly as she did so. It was only then that she realized her stomach was in a lot of pain and her head felt woozy. In an instant, all the giddiness of getting her body back evaporated.

The little girl shivered, fear consuming her. Where was she? Where were her parents? If she was correct, the demon, Matelija, had possessed her for exactly one year. That was a long time of not being able to control her actions. What had she done? Hopefully she didn't hurt anyone.

She turned her attention back to the two 18-year-olds and rubbed the tears from her eyes. The youngster saw what Matelija used her to do to them while she was trying to push him out. Maybe if she explained her situation to them, they'd help her find her parents.

With renewed hope, the little girl used her remaining strength to drag the dark haired boy over to the blonde one and curled up in between them. She liked the immediate feeling of safety that came with the duo and snuggled closer to the blonde male.

She decided it would be better to stay awake, just in case someone from Ebony Ring, or even worse, Clone Wyvren, showed up. Unfortunately, her plan wasn't working out so well. Sleep was pulling her eyelids down, pushing her to receive some much needed shut eye. Whenever she got close to drifting off, she scolded herself and moved. She needed to be a big girl until it one of her heroes woke up.

"You're so fucking heavy."

"No I'm not! I'm light-weighted for my age!"

"Would you two stop bickering? If it bothers you that much, I can carry her the rest of the way."

The first voice snorted," I may dislike you, but I'm not going to burden you with Nashi's whale-sized weight. I think it comes from all that chocolate she eats."

"Shut up, Swim Trunks-Hey, look over there. Is that...Lutz?" The little girl gulped and huddled closer to her saviors, praying that the trio wouldn't come any closer. Sadly, her wishes were ignored," Oh my Mavis."

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><p><strong>Hey guys! I'm posting this chapter a day earlier than usual because I've had three snow days in a row and I'm a bit bored (Yay Michigan!). So, I'm going to fully introduce the little girldemon child in the next chapter, but I've given you a bit of a backstory already. The next chapter will also have all of the main characters in this arc back together again, and a lot is going to get explained! (I literally just wrote the next chapter). There's only about three more chapters left in this arc, then hold onto your hats, because the next one will be coming fast! Thanks for reading!**

**-uprisingdragon**


	11. Chapter 11 A Matter of Weakness

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

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><p>"BURN 'ER TO A CRISP!"<p>

"He doesn't have fire magic, Magma-Mole."

"It's a figure of speech, Surfer-sap!"

"It wasn't the last time I checked."

"...asshole," Nashi grumbled. Usually, she would've let the insult train go on for at least another three or four hours, but because of the situation everyone was in, she let it die. She heard Winter mutter something about it being a weak insult, but didn't respond.

The trio had gotten there a couple of minutes earlier, only to find the demon child resting in-between Onyx and Lutz's unconscious bodies. She spotted them and tried to run away, but Ryos planted her to the ground with his melted steel and was now preparing to attack.

Nashi was annoyed that she couldn't do anything but watch. It made her feel utterly embarrassed that she couldn't help, much less move. She was so used to fighting her own battles that now she felt so...useless. The pinkette sighed shakily and rested her head on Winter's shoulder, ready to see the battle unfold.

Ryos cracked his knuckles as he approached the girl," Don't try and act innocent. I know what you're capable of, and I'm not one to fall for façades."

The youngster shook violently and squeezed her eyes shut," Y-You can d-do whatever you w-want to m-me, but.." She clenched her fists and stared defiantly up at the intimidating boy," don't hurt my heroes!"

The iron dragon slayer did a double-take, but recovered by grabbing her shirt and forming his hand into a steel pole," I'm not falling for it," Everything next happened in a blur; Ryos went to give the child an uppercut, but out of nowhere, Lutz jumped up from behind her and stopped his fist mid-punch," Get out of the way, blondie."

"No."

Nashi's eyes popped right out of her head," WHAT-Oh," she unhooked one of her hands from around his neck to rub his hair," sorry for yelling Winter."

"What do you mean, _no?_"

Lutz tightened his hold on the dark haired boy's fist/rod," She's not going to do anyone any harm."

"What the hell are you talking about? Of course _it_ will!"

"She's not an it, she's a little girl that was possessed," Oynx mumbled. He still hadn't recovered fully from the paralysis, and was currently laying in the same position the childhood placed him in," What happened to that snake-thing anyways? Last thing I remember was it coming at me."

The small girl tensed," I sh-shot Matelija away with m-my dragon r-roar."

Once again, Ryos's jaw dropped in shock," Dragon _what_?"

"Let her go and we'll explain," Lutz commanded. The 19 year old narrowed his eyes but followed the blonde's orders. As soon as she was released, the coral haired girl bolted behind a nearby tree. Ryos grunted and tilted his head in her direction, as if to say _she's your problem now. _Lutz carefully got to his feet, clutching his stomach as he did so. Damn, he really hit himself hard. He took a few steps before stumbling and falling on his face.

Nashi gasped," Lutz, are you alright?"

"He's fine," Winter snapped," He's just weak."

"Can you go two minutes without being a complete asshole?! He could be hurt!"

While the pair continued to trade insults, Lutz watched as the coral haired girl slipped away from her hiding spot and helped the blonde sit up. As soon as he was comfortable, she ran back behind the tree," No wait! No one will hurt you!"

"Y-you promise?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die," She shuffled hesitantly, but was eventually coaxed out of her small nook. He smiled warmly and patted the spot next to him," Are you okay, kid?"

"Y-yes sir."

He chuckled and tilted her chin up so that they were eye to eye," I'm not a sir. My name is Lutz, and the guy over there is Onyx. The one who was bullying you is Ryos, but don't worry, he usually introduces himself with threats. After that he becomes slightly tolerable. What's your name?"

"A-Alida. My name is Alida."

Nashi frowned as she saw the others converse," Why didn't he introduce us?"

"They probably forgot we were here. The less I have to talk to them, the better," The water mage answered as he repositioned her. Without knowing it, he accidentally tightened his grip on her thigh, sending white, hot pain throughout her body.

She cringed before she could stop herself," Winter, my leg!"

He loosened his grip as soon as he could and frowned at the ground," Sorry."

Ryos flicked his attention towards the Fairy Tail wizards, already bored of the small talk the (former?) demon child and annoying blonde were having. Winter was avoiding eye contact, his face a shade of red that could rival Erza's hair. Nashi, on the other hand, was acting incredibly flustered," Gah! You don't need to apologize! It didn't hurt that much-OUCH! Why the hell did you pinch me?!"

"To see if you were lying, which you were. I'm very disappointed in you, Flame-brain," He teased, his cheeks returning to normal.

"Ryos-san!"

Said boy relaxed and turned to the two healing mages as the rushed towards him," About time you two got here-"

March flung herself onto him before he could finish," Ryos-san, I'm so glad you're okay! We had to fight this hound-like thing and-" she paused," I remember everything now."

Nashi sucked in a breath; so it wasn't just her," You did?"

Like usual, Winter was the only one to respond to her," Did what? You need to stop mumbling, it makes you sound unintelligent."

The 13 year old flipped around and gasped," Winter-san? You're here!" She jumped off of Ryos, only to launch herself onto the other Fairy Tail mage," I missed you!"

The dark haired boy struggled to keep his balance," Watch it! I've got an injured idiot who thought it would be a good idea to fight a dragon on my back!"

Suddenly, everything went quiet. March slowly pulled away, her eyes already filling up with tears," She fought the dragon?"

Nashi shrank behind Winter the best she could, trying to avoid their worried stares. She had compromised everything, and having them fuss over her would only make matters worse. Detox was the first to speak up," That's why you needed is to come as quickly as we could."

Ryos nodded solemnly," Yes," Like earlier, no one answered. He took this as a sign to take control over the situation," Sabertooth slayers, I take it you trust the little girl?"

Lutz shook his head in agreement," I have no shred of doubt that she is innocent."

"Good, then she's on our side. Do you three need any medical attention?"

"I think I'm still paralysed," Onyx stated," I might need some help to get out of it, but if there is anyone in need a doctor more than I, they should take priority."

The steel dragon slayer crossed his arms," I don't think that it necessary. March, will you go heal him?"

"It would be my pleasure, Ryos-san!" She smiled, rushing over to get started immediately.

"Thank you. Detox, that means that you're going to have to help Nashi to the best of your ability. Some of her wounds are very serious, so make sure to be careful with her."

The violet haired boy gave him a thumbs up," Got it, chief."

"Lutz, you and Alida go find some wood so that we can start a fire and make camp here. Winter and I will get some food. Once we have all finished our tasks, we will assemble back here and discuss our future plans. Any objections? No? Good. Let's go."

Everyone set out to do their tasks except Winter, who was eyeing the healing mage wearily. Detox sighed and held out his hands," Don't worry, I can take it from here. I'm very experienced, and will make sure that she doesn't encounter any more harm."

He frowned," You promise?"

"I will protect her with my life and heal her until I have no more magic energy to produce," This seemed to be just good enough, because Winter finally handed Nashi over to the purple haired boy. He waved slightly at his rival before lazily trailing after Ryos," Who was that?"

The brown eyed girl sighed as her friend placed her down on one of the blankets from his backpack and started healing her," Oh, him? That's just Winter."

Detox looked incredibly confused before snapping his fingers," Oh yeah, now I remember! He's your soul mate!"

"My _what_?!"

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It was dark by the time everyone returned. Thanks to March, Onyx had recovered from being paralysed and was now moving freely. Nashi was not as fortunate; as much as Detox tried, he could not heal her leg properly. Once he figured out how the injury had come to be, he regretfully informed her that dragon saliva was heavily anti magic. There was no way he'd be able to heal her injuries, and there was a slim chance she'd be able to walk on it. Even if it did heal itself, Nashi would probably have a limp for the rest of her life.

As soon as Detox left her to get some rest, she cried. How could she live without walking? She didn't care much about her other injuries because they'd eventually cooperate with his healing magic and get back to normal. Her leg, though, was out of the question. What would her parents say when they found out? What would the guild think? They'd baby her for the rest of her life and never let her go on another mission.

Winter eventually showed up to bring her to Ryos's meeting. By that time, her tears were long gone. She was only left with a hollow feeling and self pity. Nashi was so disappointed in herself that she barely acknowledged him when he spoke to her," You alright?"

"No."

"I figured. I should've known that asshole couldn't heal you properly."

She frowned deeply," He did the best he could, Winter. The only thing he couldn't heal was my...It's not his fault that the dragon bit me, it's mine."

He stared down at the bandages wrapped around her leg quietly. He seemed guilty about something, but she couldn't put her finger on what it could be. After a few seconds of awkward silence, the dark haired boy tucked his hands under her knees and scooped her up," Don't blame yourself for getting hurt. You did what you thought was best and that took guts."

"Yeah, but was it worth it?"

"Worth it? Of course it was, dumbass! If you hadn't taken out its wings, it'd probably be flying around and destroying everything! I know that it doesn't sound like much of a trade off right now, but it'll be worth it in the end," He grinned," Besides, you've got men bowing at your feet. It shouldn't be too hard to find one that'll carry you around until you're back to normal."

Nashi smiled for the first time in hours and poked his nose," Are you volunteering?"

"I can drop you, ya know," He grumbled as he carried her to the fireplace. Lutz and Onyx were sitting together with Alida nestled comfortably between them. March sat to the left of the shadow dragon slayer, trying to have an overly animated conversation with Detox. The support mage was incredibly downcast, seeing that he couldn't heal Nashi's leg. Ryos was positioned next to him, watching carefully as Winter brought the pink haired girl in. The boy carefully placed her next to Ryos and pulled his jacket off, tucking in behind her head as a makeshift pillow. He ignored the shocked stares everyone was sending him and plopped down on the other side of her, crossing his arms irritably," We're back now, so can we get this shit over with?"

Ryos nodded and faced Alida with a serious expression," Who are you and why were you possessed?"

The coral haired girl seemed a bit taken aback," Umm, I'm a fourth gemeranation (generation) Aether dragon slayer. I don't know where my mommy and daddy are. All I know is that a year ago, a dark guild, Ebony Ring, attacked them. Matelija, the big evil snake, crawled in my mouth and made it so that he control me," Her tiny hands clutched the fabric of her skirt," I-I think I was a bad person when Matelija was in me. H-He used me for m-my magic," She looked up hopefully at Lutz, the one she had warmed up the most to," Will you help me find my mommy and daddy if I help defeat Black Soul?"

March furrowed her eyebrows," Who is Black Soul?"

"The dragon Yoshi-"

"Nashi," Winter corrected bluntly.

"Oh, my bad! Black Soul is the dragon that Noshi fought. I heard Matelija say that Black Soul is master Pravum's pet."

The pinkette slapped a hand over his mouth before he could interrupt again; there were more important matters at hand than getting her name right," Who is Master Pravum? Is he the leader of Ebony Ring?"

Alida shook her head," No, he's the leader of everything."

"That's not true," Ryos murmured," I don't recall a Pravum being in charge of the magic council-"

"That's 'cause he's not. He's the master of Clone Wyvern."

Ryos, Detox, and March paled at that name," You're working with _Clone Wyvern_?!"

"No! Matelija was controlling me, and he was in Ebony Ring. Ebony Ring is a smaller guild that is part of the Duobligi alliance. Clone Wyvern is the strongest guild in the alliance, which makes it the leader of the other guilds. Master Pravum is the one that makes the choices, so I asouped (assumed) that he was the leader."

The steel dragon slayer combed his hair with his hands," Damn. I didn't think that Clone Wyvern had so many connections."

Lutz blinked," Wait, why do you know what Clone Wyvern is? I've never heard of it, have you Onyx?" His friend shook his head no," Nashi?"

"I haven't. Is it some sort of a dark guild?"

Alida shuddered," It's one of the worst. I-I went there once, and there w-were hostages hanging from the ceiling. T-then they k-killed someone for f-fun. It was...it was...," The memory suddenly overwhelmed her and stopped her from finishing.

Sensing the oncoming tears, Onyx scooped the child up and placed her on his lap. She buried her head in his chest and started sobbing. The dark green haired boy sighed and started stroking her hair, trying to calm her down," I think that's all we should question her about tonight."

Winter tensed; why were all these girls crying? First it was Aqua, then Nashi, and now this random miniature dragon slayer was bawling. He desperately needed a change of subject," You said something about discussing future plans?"

Ryos darkened," Tomorrow at daybreak, we're going to fight the dragon-"

"What?!" Nashi shrieked," You can't fight the dragon! It's too strong! If it wasn't for Winter, I would've been killed! I'm sorry to say this, but we have no chance at defeating Black Soul! We need to get help!"

"You were fighting it alone, and since there will be at least three of us fighting-"

"I know what you're implying," March interrupted," I'm not going to stay back and watch this fight. My forte is attacking, and I'd be much more help if I were fighting by your side. This is my choice."

Ryos frowned deeply; he had just gotten her back, and now he was going to risk her life again," Fine, but if it gets too dangerous, I want you to fall back."

"I'm not weak-"

"Neither was Nashi, and now look at her!"

The fire dragon slayer winced and tried to say something. _Anything. _Instead, she sat gaping like a fish out of water. Maybe it was because there was nothing she could do about it. As much as she may have denied it, she knew the reason his statement had such a heavy impact on her; he was right.

Winter, on the other hand, was lucid. Before he could second guess himself, he rocketed to his feet and dragged Ryos up by his collar," What the _hell _are you implying?"

Lutz couldn't help himself; Ever since he had met Winter, the two were constantly at each other's throats. He jumped up and yanked his rival away," Since when are you so protective of her? Oh, I know! It's because you think she's too weak to take care of herself now that she's injured!"

The water mage spun around and punched the blonde in the jaw," That is not true and you know it!"

"No, now that she can't fight back, you're going to gain her trust just so that you can walk all over her in the future! I've seen your type do-"

"What the hell do you mean by _my type_?"

Lutz shrugged and rubbed his jaw," To put it simply, you're an asshole. I don't know why you came here, but I am pretty damn positive that it wasn't to save Nashi. How do I know, you may ask? You have always hated her. Well guess what? No one likes you! You're such a dick that no one wants to hang out with you! You just mope around, expecting people to talk to you just so that you can scare them off. You're a self-centered jerk that only cares about himself, and while some people may choose to look it over, I won't! Since the moment I saw you today, I've been waiting for you to _leave._ Everyone has."

"Lutz-san!" March gasped.

Winter glanced down Nashi, but didn't get a response. He rolled his eyes and glared at them," Fine! Go and kill yourselves for all I care! I don't need to put up with this shit! Good riddance!" He flipped them all off before spinning around and exiting the campsite.

There was at least five minutes where nobody spoke, as if they were waiting for the grumpy mage to return and await their apologies. He never did. Nashi's eyes welled up, anger consuming her," Lutz...WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?! He just saved my life, and that's the thanks he gets?"

The blonde shrank back," I was only trying to help."

There it was again. That fish out of water feeling that she despised. The fact that she couldn't do or say anything if she wanted to. Was it because Lutz was right about the Fullbuster boy? A few days ago, she would've said yes," I...I know."

Onyx coughed uncomfortably," Uh, I think it's time to get some rest. Come on, Lutz," He led the blonde, Alida, and March (the sky dragon slayer refused to leave until she hugged Nashi and told her that she was the strongest mage in Fairy Tail) away to get some shut eye. Detox asked Nashi if she needed anything before he went to bed, but she only grunted. The violet haired boy sighed dejectedly and followed the others, leaving her alone with Ryos.

The iron dragon slayer, however, refused to move," I wasn't implying that you were weak."

"What were you implying, then?" She snapped grouchily.

"Watch it, Dragneel, I'm trying to make you feel better. What I meant was that you can't walk, and I don't want March to have the same fate. If that means your weak, then fine, but you should know that you're anything but weak in my book," He stated.

"Thanks Ryos," Nashi blushed and began to fiddle with her hands," I've missed you. You're a really good guy, and it's not as fun without you around. I know that we had a somewhat rocky reunion, but..."

His eyes widened," But what?"

"...can you come back to Fairy Tail when this is all over?"

The dark haired boy sighed and stared into the fire. His face was almost emotionless as he pondered her suggestion. He didn't know if he was ready for that big of a step yet. Sure, he could finally talk to Nashi and March without seeing them bleeding and crying in the back of his head, but facing the guild? The only thing as intimidating as that would be...fighting a dragon," If I survive this battle, I will."

She seemed satisfied with his answer, because she leaned onto his shoulder and began to doze off," Good, you'll love what we've done with the place."

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When Nashi woke up the next morning, everyone was gone.

It didn't take long to realize where they went. They thought that they could fight the dragon. They thought that it'd be easy. She growled and clutched her forehead in annoyance. They didn't know what they were up against.

The pinkette sighed hopefully," Maybe they didn't go to battle it. They probably didn't. I mean, Alida is just a kid, and they wouldn't want a kid fighting a dragon...right? Anyways, they wouldn't leave me to fend for myself, right? Right? Why do I keep saying right?" Her denial quickly faded into anger," I swear, if they don't kill themselves, I'm going to tie them to a fucking firework and shoot it into the sky! That's what they deserve! Death!" Nashi sighed and lazily rolled onto her stomach," Maybe I shouldn't have fought the dragon in the first place. Ryos was right, it was a stupid idea. Hell, if I hadn't had my chocolate cravings, we wouldn't be in this mess. Well, we might be in a bigger mess...or a smaller mess...huh," Realization hit her like a brick," This is all my fault. If I hadn't wanted some fucking chocolate, we'd all be safe at the guild and...and then our parents would have to fight the dragon, and if my dad had gotten bit by that thing instead of me..."

Nashi clenched her fists," My dad would've give up just because of a stupid leg injury. He'd fight even if every bone in his body was broken," The brown eyed girl buried her fear deep down in the pit of her stomach and gripped the tree next to her. Winter's jacket fell out from behind her head, and without a second though, she slipped it on," I'm gonna need you-I mean, your help, whether you're here or not."

She took a deep breath and tightened her hold on the tree. It was now or never. _Here goes nothing. _Nashi pulled herself onto her feet, stumbling slightly as she did so. It was probably natural to be a bit clumsy after not walking for a day, right? Right. _There I go with the "rights" again. Stop getting off subject, your friends are waiting for you!_

The fire dragon slayer squeezed her eyes shut and took a step.

That turned out to be a horrible idea, because she was headed straight back onto the ground," Shit!"

After three (maybe four) more tries, Nashi had managed to steady herself and was now limping her way towards the canyon. Sure, every time her bad leg so much as brushed against a branch, she would practically pass out from the pain. There was also the fact that black spots would occasionally blur her version. She was pretty hungry too. Oh, and her hair kept flying into her face. But other than that, she was fine.

Suddenly, her foot caught on something. Before she could stop herself, she was hurtling back down onto the dart for the fifth (sixth?) time. Pain shot through her leg like a thousand tiny knives, and it took all of her willpower to keep from passing out," Dammit all!" She went to push herself back up, but froze at the sound of a twig snapping; she wasn't alone.

"I go out for one night, and when I come back," She felt someone snake their hand under her chin and tilt it up," you're doing something stupid again."

Ugh. Winter. Despite having a slightly bitter taste in her mouth from seeing him, she couldn't help but feel relieved that it wasn't a bandit. Nashi grabbed onto his shoulders, using them to sit herself up," Mind helping me to my feet?"

"Don't tell me you're trying to walk," She sent him a pointed glare that made him clear his throat," Okay, I guess you are. I can carry you again, if you like. It'd probably be-now you're walking, okay," He started to trail behind her," Where are you going?"

"To fight Black Soul again," Much to her surprise, she was met with silence. It was almost unnerving; she expected him to get angry or dismissive or even overprotective. Frankly, Nashi expected him to at least show some emotion, but the fact that he wasn't reacting at all was almost...upsetting? She wasn't used to Winter being unpredictable. It had always been the two of them rough housing and arguing.

That was when it hit her; whether she liked it or not, their relationship had changed drastically over the past two days. At first, he didn't set out to find her because he cared for her welfare. But she was pretty damn sure that he cared now.

That meant a lot to her.

She gently reached out and took his hand," Thank you. For everything," Then she turned around and ran (_cough, cough, _hobbled) away before he could try and change her mind.

The moment was ruined when she fell flat on her face. She growled in annoyance, but felt an odd absence of something. Could it be...pain?

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter was way longer than I originally planned, but the next chapter is the dragon fight, and I didn't want to put the last part of this chapter in the first part of the next. A lot of information involving what this story will revolve around was given out in here as well. Chapter 12 will be the last chapter in the Dragon Slayer Arc, and after that I will introduce a majority of the guild! Thanks for reading!<strong>

**-uprisingdragon **


	12. Chapter 12 Dragon's Blood

**I do not own Fairy Tail**

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><p>They were badly devastated.<p>

The fight against Black Soul may have started off decently, but even though it was four against one (Ryos refused to let Detox anywhere near the dragon and the Sabertooth slayers insisted that Alida was safer with him), there was little to no chance of winning.

The monster was obviously powerful. Within five minutes of the raid, he had smashed Lutz into the ground. In a desperate attempt to protect his best friend, Onyx took the next hit and was sent head-first into the wall. That only left Ryos and March. Between the two of them, they had served some pretty bad blows onto the dragon's legs and the iron dragon slayer made sure to bolt it's mouth closed.

Things took a turn for the worst when it swiped Ryos into a nearby bolder. Much like the shadow dragon slayer had done earlier, March jumped in front of him and used her sky dragon roar to fend it off for at least a minute.

It didn't work.

Unimpressed by her feeble attempts, Black Soul picked her up by her foot and held her to his eye level. Since he couldn't open his mouth anymore, he simply dropped her from a three story height and onto the ground.

It had only been seven minutes, and Ryos was the only one left conscious. It made him wonder exactly how powerful this Master Provum was. If he had been able to control a dragon, he must hold immense power. If they couldn't defeat his dragon, how were they going to take down Clone Wyvern?

Nashi could. In a last minute decision, he had decided to leave her behind so that she would have another chance. She would have to be the one to defeat Clone Wyvern and avenge them. To think that she had lasted longer in her battle with the dragon without getting scratched than they did while bloody and unconscious, he knew that she had a chance.

Ryos clenched his jaw and brought himself back onto his feet, gripping the rock for support. He had to defeat the dragon. He tuned out the sound of Alida's sobbing and turned back for one last look at his best friend; Detox was trying to hold back his own tears and begging him not to go through with this. They both knew there was no turning back, especially at a time like this, but that didn't stop him from pleaing.

Even though he was aware of the gruesome fate that awaited him, he gave the violet haired boy one last grin and held up the Fairy Tail sign with his fingers. _No matter where you are, I will always look out for you._

The boy nodded tearfully and responded with the same gesture.

Ryos felt his smile slip into a grimace when he faced Black Soul again," I know you don't intend to let any of us live, but I have a score to settle with your master. Remember this name; Ryos Redfox. Make sure to tell Pravum that he will be haunted by that name until he is on his deathbed, because as soon as he dies, I'm dragging him down into hell with me!" He turned his hand into an iron chainsaw," This is for destroying my childhood!"

The 19 year old lunged at the dragon, successfully slicing it's leg. That was the only win he achieved, though, because the beast stomped him into the ground much more vigorously than he had with Lutz. Black Soul leered as he started to squish him onto the ground like a grape. His body screamed in agony, but couldn't respond. He was pinned down and left out of options.

"Ryos!" Detox cried. The dragon slayer wearily looked to the side, curious to why the hell his friend sounded so relieved.

His question was answered when the dragon shrieked through it's closed lips and stumbled backwards. A pink haired head hopped in front of him, grinning wildly," Remember me? I'm the one that took your wings out."

The dark haired boy's eyes widened in a mix of shock, horror, and joy," Nashi?! How the hell did you get here? Y-you can't stand!" Yet, she was standing. How was this possible? There should've been no way that she could make it there on her own.

Maybe he had underestimated her.

Nashi shrugged nonchalantly and held her hand out," It's a really funny story, but I can save that for later. Basically, there's a water lock around my leg that is helping it move freely with very little pain," She tilted her head to Winter, who was sitting next to an exuberant healing wizard," It's taking a lot of magic energy out of him, so we're going to have to finish this quickly. Luckily, I have an idea, but you have to trust me and let me fight."

_"I'm more experienced and older, so I should be the one that takes care of it!"_

_"I need the training and real life experiences, so I'll take care of it!"_

Ryos smiled at the memory; she had grown up a lot in the past seven years. He accepted her hand and brought himself to his feet," Let's do this."

"W-wait," March pulled herself off the ground and stood on the other side of her hero," If Nashi-san can fight, so can I."

"We can't let the kid show us up," Lutz added as he limped over.

"She already showed you up," Onyx snorted. He nodded briefly to Nashi," It's good to see you back on your feet."

Alida wiggled away from Detox and slipped in between the Sabertooth slayers," I made a promise to help you get rid of Black Soul, and I don't break my promises."

"I'm going to stay back here..." Detox said bashfully," But I'm going to use my support magic to boost you guys up!"

"Why the hell didn't you use it earlier?" Winter gritted, but he gave a quick nod to the pinkette, informing her that he wasn't backing out either.

Nashi smirked and pounded her fists together," Alright! Give us our strategy, Ryos."

"Okay, since Alida is fighting, Onyx and Lutz are going to hang around her and make sure Black Soul doesn't hurt her. March and I will do the same with Nashi-"

"Like hell you will!"

The two briefly glared at each other until Ryos gave in," Fine. You said to trust you, and I do. The three of us will be the main offensive while the Sabers and Alida use long range attacks. If that doesn't work, we'll figure out another plan while you three switch from defensive to offensive. If we work together, we may be able to do this," Something solemn suddenly washed over his face," Before we go, I just wanted to thank you guys. I know that you could've turned me away two days ago, but you decided to trust the alleged Fairy Tail betrayer. Just know that even though the hard the past few days have been hard, they have also been some of the best of my life. Thank you," Then, in a completely out of character act, he sniffled," Ready?"

The eight (excluding Winter; he still hated all of them except Nashi and March) all shared a warm look that all said the same thing; they were a team now. Even though they may be in different guilds or no guild at all, they were able to work together and if the believed in themselves, there was nothing they couldn't do.

Nashi took a deep breath and cracked her knuckles," Let's do this."

The battle erupted.

Nashi, Ryos, and March leapt forward and each took one section of the dragon; the pinkette jumped on it's head, grinning maniacally," Guess who, bitch?! Fire Dragon Brilliant Flame!" She furrowed her hands together and slammed it into his forehead.

Ryos reformed his chainsaw hand and slammed it into the monster's chin. March held her hands out and jumped into the air," Sky Dragon Cyclone!"

A gust of air flew from her hands and catapulted into the dragon's stomach. Black Soul stumbled back slightly, but regained his bearings and through Nashi off his head. The three Fairy Tail Slayers regathered at behind a boulder," What do we do now? None of our attacks are doing enough damage!"

"Dragneel, I'd love to hear this plan you were talking about earlier," Ryos grumbled and he tried to sooth his leg.

The pinkette grimaced slightly," I don't think you'll like it."

"I don't care if I like it or not; will it work?"

She sighed and rubbed her head," Yeah, I'm positive it will."

"Then tell us what it is!" March begged," The Sabers won't be able to hold off much longer!"

"Alright, so you remember how our parents told us about the first dragon they fought?"

"You mean the robot?" Ryos replied dryly.

"If you're referring to Dorma Anim, then yes," She glanced over the rock before continuing," Our parents defeated him by forming a triple unison raid and shooting it through the dragon."

The Iron dragon slayer snorted," They shot your _dad_ through the dragon, not their magic-hold on a minute, you're not saying-"

"All six of you are going to shoot me through the dragon with your combined dragon roars! I'll be like a bullet!" She replied brightly," Easy peasy!"

"You're talking about getting shot into a dragon! How the hell are you taking this so lightly? What if something bad happens?" The dark haired boy barked.

Nashi shrugged," I trust you guys to get me out if something goes wrong. Come on, we don't have much time."

Sensing his discomfort with the situation, March rubbed Ryos's shoulder," Come on, Ryos-san. Nashi-san can do anything! It'll turn out right."

He sighed in defeat," Fine. If you're so damn insistent on risking your life _again_, who am I to stop you? Finish him off, Flame."

"Flame?"

Ryos smirked," Yeah, it's your new nickname. Now let's go!"

The three hopped from their hiding space and dispersed to prepare for the final push. Ryos took over fighting the dragon while March told the Sabers and Alida their plan. They seemed just as hesitant about it as the iron dragon slayer had, but seeing that it was their only hope, they agreed.

Ryos stood by Nashi," Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yeah."

"You're brave, kid."

She grinned cockily," What do I have to be afraid of? I've got seven people to help me out this time."

March sped back," We're ready, Nashi-san. Good luck."

"Thanks; I'm gonna need lots of it," She took a deep breath and made made her fists burst into flames," I'm fired up!" Ryos stood in front of her and place his hands together. She smiled confidently and took off, jumping onto his hands. He easily caught her feet and threw her into the air," Iron Dragon Roar!"

The attack hit her feet and shot her forward at a faster speed. March and Alida stepped up next so that they were side by side," Aether dragon roar!"

"Sky dragon roar!"

The two attacks melded together with the first one and sent her flying at a frighteningly fast pace. Onyx and Lutz bolted forward and cupped their hands around their mouths," Shadow dragon roar!"

"White dragon roar!"

Like earlier, the attacks combined with the trio's, creating a six way unison raid. Nashi was merely inches away from penetrating Black Soul when she spun around and aimed at the behind her," Fire dragon roar!"

She shot into the dragon with a sickening splat-like sound. Like predicted, the dragon roars that were serving as her force only bounced off of the monster's armor-like skin. It did, however stumble back and into the opposite canyon wall.

The dragon slayers began to cheer, but was stopped short when Winter stumbled forward. His energy had been completely drained by this point, but he mustered up enough energy to yell," Where the hell is Nashi?!"

March screamed bloody murder," She didn't come out other side!"

Everything next seemed to happen in slow motion; Winter charged the wounded dragon, only to be swatted to the side and knocked out. Alida started sobbing and clung to Lutz's leg. Onyx placed one hand on the tiny girl's head and the other on his best friend's shoulder. Much like the Aether dragon slayer, Lutz was crying. March clenched and unclenched her fists with silent tears slipping down her cheeks," NASHI!" Much like Winter, she began to rush towards the Black Soul," YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT!" Ryos lunged forward and yanked the 13 year old back before she could do something irrational, too shell shocked to do anything himself. March was hysterical," Ryos, we need to do something! What do we do?"

"I...I don't know-"

"Look!" Detox yelled as he pointed up at the dragon. Everyone turned to Black Soul, only to see him bleeding profusely out of any opening in his body (Lutz quickly covered Alida's eyes in order to save her from future nightmares). The Violet haired boy couldn't hide his grin," I think she's attacking him from the inside! She's still alive!"

Black Soul swayed slightly before collapsing onto the ground. A cloud of dust rose into the air from the impact, filling the air around them. An eery silence consumed the six as they waited. As soon as the dust settled, the great black dragon was dead.

Ryos regained his bearings quickly and rocketed forward faster than his feet wanted to allow. As soon as he reached the carcass, he formed his hand into a chainsaw and dug it into the spot Nashi flew in. In one fluid motion, he sliced open the dragon's stomach.

The creatures internal organs spilled out, along with a barely conscious Nashi. She tried to cough the blood that had filled her lungs out, but only ended up choking. Once her throat was clear, she started screaming.

The iron dragon slayer's eyes widened," Detox, what the hell is happening to her?!"

His friend flew forward, a faint look of surprise on his face," Oh my Mavis, she is one smart girl."

Ryos, on the other hand, was in hysterics," What do you mean she's smart!? She's hurt! She could be dying for all we know! And all you can do is comment on how she killed the dragon?"

"I don't think you understand-"

He brushed his partner off and kneeled down next to the pinkette, quietly scooping her hand up in his and placing her head on his thigh," It'll be okay, Flame. It's going to be okay."

She looked over at him while grimacing in pain," Please don't leave again."

_"Don't leave, Ryos! You're my best friend!"_

_"You're better off without me in your lives."_

Ryos nodded firmly and squeezed her hand," I'm not going anywhere. Not this time."

She allowed herself to smile before screaming again. He stared down at her injured leg, which was glowing a oddly calming red. March slid next to him and took Nashi's free hand. The pinkette used all of her strength to place the hand that March took on her cheek," It'll be okay..."

"N-Nashi-san..."

The glow around her leg was beginning to fade and her screams were reduced to whimpers," D-don't worry 'bout me guys. I'm g-gonna...be...just...fine..."

Nashi smirked as she closed her eyes and went still.

March let out a strangled sob and buried herself into Ryos's side, and all he could do was wrap his arm around her. It couldn't be. This was impossible. He had just gotten them back and-

The pink haired girl sneezed.

The two Fairies froze and looked back down at the fire dragon slayer, only to see that she had sat herself off of Ryos's lap and was now diving back into Black Soul's blood," It worked!"

Ryos blinked. Then he blinked again. After about a minute of gaping at the ecstatic girl, he reached forward and yanked her up by her collar," What plan?! Was this all some kind of joke?! We thought you died!"

She shrugged," Detox said that dragon's blood could heal my wounds, and he was right! I can't believe you thought I was dying! I said that it'd be okay...well, I was hoping that it'd be okay. Seriously, that hurt like hell!" She giggled and kicked the dirt," I can walk again! I can-oh my Mavis, we defeated the dragon. We...beat...Black Soul!" Without warning, she launched herself onto Ryos, wrapping her legs around his stomach and arms around his neck," We actually did it!"

It was extremely hard to be mad at her now that everything was okay, so he rolled his eyes and hugged her back," I knew you said that I wouldn't like your plan, but I didn't think that it'd be that bad."

"Thanks for cutting me out of the dragon."

"What kind of a friend would I be if I didn't?"

March ran in from behind Nashi and threw her arms the two of them while sobbing blissfully," We did it! Nashi-san can walk again, Black Soul can't hurt anyone, and now we can all go home!"

Reality hit Ryos like a brick; he had promised that if he survived this battle, he'd return to Fairy Tail. Nashi seemed to be thinking the same thing, because she was smirking at him," Yup! Guess who's coming with us?"

"Ryos-san and Detox-san?"

"Correct!"

The Violet haired boy shot his friend a look that said _what the hell did you sign me up for? _He nodded back, as if to say _It's time._

Nashi suddenly pried herself off of Ryos and backed away," Wait, where's Winter?" She saw his unconscious form almost immediately after she asked and rushed forward to him. In one quick movement, she hoisted him onto her back and brought him back over to where the Sabers and Alida had joined the others," Is he going to be alright?"

"Yeah, he just got swiped while low on magic energy. I say give him a few days and he'll be fine," Ryos titled his head," Do you want me to carry him instead? He seems a bit heavy."

"Nah, he's not that bad. Once I had to carry Leo to Magnolia all the way from Harogeon because he wouldn't listen to the man we were hired by. I kept telling him not to try and open the door with his head, but no-"

Lutz rose his brow," Uh, we're near Oak Town, Nash. It's going to be longer than you-"

March giggled cutely into her hand," Don't try and convince Nashi-san otherwise! She can win any arguement and can definitely carry Winter-san back!"

Onyx grinned and ruffled her hair," I agree. Anyways, it's about time we start to head home. Our parents are probably worried."

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After a lot of convincing, Ryos was able to coax Detox in following him back to Magnolia (if he was going to have to face his parents, his friend could). The 19 year old only agreed to come if they dropped by Sabertooth first so that they could clean themselves up, get something to eat, and relax a little bit before returning to Fairy Tail (they all knew he was stalling).

Nashi didn't protest. She really needed a shower because she was currently caked in dragon's blood and kept getting weird looks from people.

Thankfully, Lutz and Onyx offered her their bathroom to use while they went to the guild to reunite with their parents. March, Ryos, Detox, and Winter (who was now awake) decided to stay behind, while Lutz invited Alida to come with them. It was somewhat obvious that they were going to invite her to join Sabertooth.

After Nashi was all cleaned up and wearing her pajamas (her old clothes were forever stained), the five headed home. Ryos refused to ride a train because of his motion sickness, so it took them the rest of the day return home. Winter was complaining about how Nashi got his jacket covered In blood with March defending her in the background while the Detox and Ryos upheld a conversation between themselves. At one point, the support mage tapped into his telepathy and communicated his nerves with his friend_," I don't know if I can do this."_

_"No one' showing to make you," _Ryos replied_," But facing them is something I have to do."_

It was around 10:30 P.M. when they finally reached Magnolia. Since March's house was on the outskirts of town anyways, they stopped by and dropped her off. The 13 year old squealed in excitement and hugged all four of them before racing towards the front door and flinging it open," I'M HOME!"

They could hear her parents yelp in surprise, their shock quickly morphing into relief. Seeing that the girl was safe, the older kids headed towards the guild. This time, there wasn't much talking. Everyone (except Winter, who wasn't much of a conversationalist in the first place) was nervous about facing their parents again.

Ryos stopped once they were in front of Fairy Tail," I don't think I can do this."

Winter rolled his eyes and muttered something about him being a wimp before heading inside himself. Aqua squealed in delight and tackled her brother to the ground, smothering him with hugs and panicked mumbling," Winter, you're back! Don't ever leave without telling anyone like that again!"

He smiled and rubbed her head fondly," I can't promise that, sis."

Nashi nodded supportively and followed the boy in, coaxing the other two with her," Come on. The worst they could do is be upset because you left. It's not a big-"

"SHI-SHI!"

"-deal."

Aqua had pried herself off of her brother and forced her best friend into a hug," I was so worried! What happened? We only got note about you being safe, but we didn't know if it was real or not! You're parents were a wreck! I swear-who are they?"

Ryos paled while Detox edged away towards the bar, murmuring something about getting a drink. Nashi sighed and pushed her friend off of her," I'll tell you in a minute, but there is something I need to do first," her blue haired rose her eyebrow curiously, but allowed her to do what she needed to.

There was only a few wizards still in the guild at this time of night; Mira was cleaning glasses in the corner and listening to Kolas as he shared his latest adventure with her. Droy, Jet, and his wife, Eliza, were huddled in a table chatting about the couple's son, Maverick. Mansi Strauss was showing Sterling Dovev something she from her college class. Wakaba and Cana were drunk off their asses while Macao fiddled with his cup half-heartedly, occasionally mumbling something about his missing granddaughter. Nashi, feeling a little guilty, yelled," SHE'S AT ROMEO'S!" That was enough to send the old man flying out of his seat and towards his son's house. That only left one couple nestled in the far corner.

Without a word, Nashi grabbed Ryos's wrist and dragged him over to a the couple," Hi Aunt Levy! Hi Uncle Gajeel!"

The dark haired boy's eyes widened in fear when he realized what was going on," Nashi, I don't think-"

Levy interrupted him by gathering her god-daughter into a large hug," Where have you been, young lady? Do you know how worried your parents have been?"

"Of course, Auntie, but I have someone I want both of you to meet."

The woman unlatched herself from her god-daughter and scanned Ryos thoughtfully," Dear, he's shaking. Is he alright?"

Nashi frowned and looked at her friend; The powerful fallen fairy Edge was shaking like a leaf. His face was begging her to let him leave, even though both of them knew he didn't want to. She rubbed his arm reassuringly," Come on, you can do it."

Gajeel lazily glanced up from his food," Who the hell is this? Don't tell me ya finally got a boyfriend."

"You're 18 and you've never had a boyfriend?" Ryos chuckled as he began to feel more comfortable," That's pathetic."

She crossed her arms defensively," I could if I wanted to, but I'm...Uh...shut up!"

"Don't pick on her," Levy scolded," It's not nice. That goes for you too, Gajeel. You should know better," Her husband grunted," Anyways, what is your name?"

"Uh...U-Uh..."

"Why's the kid stuttering so much?"

The blue haired woman sent him another glare," Gajeel, stop picking on them!"

"It's not my fault that the kid can't speak straight."

"Oh, come on," She paused and observed Ryos more, making him uncomfortable again," He kind of looks like you, Gajeel. Same black hair, same red eyes...," Levy started choking up," You know, he has the same eyes that Ryos did."

"R-Ryos? You're n-not gonna call me Edge?" As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He wasn't ready yet! What if they hated him? They probably hated him. He did abandon them after attacking the baby of the guild.

"He's our son and we named him Ryos, not that silly name-" She blinked, processing what he just said," Ryos? Is that you?"

He stared at the ground and scratched his head nervously," Yeah...I'm sor-" The dark haired boy was immidiately silenced when his mother pulled him into the most loving hug she could muster. It was only then that he realized how much things had changed in the past seven years; Levy's head only reached his shoulder and she had grown her blue hair out. She used to be taller than him," M-Mom, I'm sorry-"

The solid-script mage was too busy sobbing into her lost son's shirt to realize that he was trying to apologize," Gajeel! It's him! He's back!"

Her husband, the great Black Steel Gajeel, was too busy gawking and crying to respond," That's our kid? But he was 12...he grew up...he-" Much like his wife, the man threw himself onto his son," Damnit kid, we didn't know if you had died or not!"

Ryos was in pure shock," You're not mad at me?"

Levy slapped her son's chest," Of course we're not mad! You came home! You're safe and alive, and that's all that matters to us! We can be a family again!"

The 4th generation dragon slayer felt his eyes gloss over," You still want me? Even after all those rumors and-"

"Why the hell wouldn't we want you?" Gajeel grumbled," From what we've heard, you're a fucking badass!"

"L-language Gajeel."

"Sorry, Shrimp. I'm just so fucking happy!"

Nashi grinned joyfully, elated that she had reunited the Redfoxes again," Ryos, I gotta go find my parents. Come to the guild tomorrow, I'll introduce you to everyone, okay?"

He nodded at her with tears pouring down his cheeks," Thank you, Nashi. For everything."

That suddenly reminded her of something she had to do. The pinkette gave him a thumbs up before searching the guild for the one person she needed at the time. He wasn't here anymore, so he must've started to head home. She erased any trace of hesitation from her body and flew out of the guild and straight into Winter's back," Oh, ow! Sorry, Winter."

Said boy grunted," Aren't you going to head home?"

"I gotta do something first."

"What?"

Without warning, she wrapped her arms around the boy's middle and forced him into a hug. He stiffened and didn't return it, but she pressed on anyways," Thank you for saving my life."

Aqua let out an audible," Awww!" In the background before slyly commenting that she'd give them some alone time (there was also something hinted about safe sex, but neither of them picked it up).

Once the Fullbuster daughter was gone, Winter tried to push the pinkette away," Uh, you're welcome...Don't hug me."

"Why not?"

"I don't like you. We don't like each other. We're not friends-"

"But I want to be your friend."

Winter flinched," Why? Lutz was right, I'm a-"

She pulled away quickly and grabbed his face with her hands, making him look her dead in the eyes," Winter Silver Fullbuster, what Lutz said was _not _true! Sure, you may be an asshole on the outside, but now I know that you are just as sweet and caring as anyone in this guild! I would be honored to call you my friend-"

This time, Winter was the one to pull her into the hug. It took her awhile to realize what was happening, but once she did, she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned her head onto his shoulder. His hands tightened on her back, almost as if he was nervous that she would pull away and laugh at him. When she didn't, he relaxed again," Thank you."

"For what?"

She felt one of his hands rise off his back and hold onto hers," For everything."

_"Thank you. For everything."_

Nashi choked up; so he had been listening that morning. Not only that, but he understood what she meant," Oh Winter...I think this is going to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

He chuckled and pulled away, ruffling her hair as he did so," Don't think I'm going soft just because we're friends now, got it?"

She rolled her eyes fondly," Geez, you're such an asshole."

He snorted at her comment," Yeah, sure. I'm gonna head home now, my parents are probably worried. You should do the same."

"I will."

"Good. Night, Flame Brain."

She watched him disappear into the distance, trying to wipe the silly grin off of her face," Goodnight, Winter."

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Detox played with his straw while eavesdropping on Ryos's reunion. His parents were excitedly chatting about letting him stay at their house for as long as he liked and begging him to tell them stories about his adventures. He frowned jealously, wishing his parents were like that.

He knew better, though. They weren't going to accept him. Hell, they'd probably try to send him back into the foster system. Maybe they'd realize that he was still alive and try and kill them so that they wouldn't have to deal with them ever again-

"Excuse me, do you need a refill?"

Detox lazily glanced up, only to be met with a purple haired bartender. Where had the white haired one run off to? He gulped," Uh, n-no, I'm fine."

She smiled generously," Okay. Do you need anything else from me?"

_Tell her she's your mom. Tell her she's your mom. Tell her she's your mom._

"N-no. Thank you."

Kinanna nodded and was about to leave, but something drew her back," Are you new around here? I've never seen you before."

_Shit, she's still talking to you. What should I say? Tell her she's your mom._

Detox rubbed his arm anxiously," I'm just visiting, but I'm sure that my friend...is joining," He slumped in disappointment when the reality of the situation weighed on him; there was no way he'd be able to tell Kinanna the truth. Not yet, at least. Ryos, on the other hand, had already fessed up and was thrown headfirst back into his old life," I need to go."

The violet haired boy spun off of the barstool and out of the guild. No one noticed he was gone until Ryos began searching for him. In fact, he didn't stop looking until 12:45 when Kinanna said she recognized the description he was giving her.

That was all the information Ryos had needed to know that his friend was gone.

_"You're being too hard on yourself; no matter what you do, they still care about you and are probably worried that you haven't contacted them in the past seven years! Not only that, but in order to protect yourself, you set up a reputation that makes you look like a bad guy!" Detox ran a hand through his hair," We're 19. Isn't it time you handled the situation like an adult?"_

The iron dragon slayer smiled sadly," You're still a hypocrite."

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Nashi cautiously entered her house, scanning the area wearily. Even though it was late, she could see that the kitchen light was on and hear her parents talking," I need to go out and look for her again, Luce."

"No. It's my fault that she left, so I should be the one to look for her."

"Luce, it's not your-"

The blonde haired woman sniffled," No, it is. I'm too hard on her. I have to understand that she's an adult now and can make her own decisions. I shouldn't be bossing her around as much as I do."

The pink haired girl nervously made her way towards the voices, fear bubbling in her stomach. What had she done? Aqua was right, the Dragneels were a mess and it was all her fault," Mom? Dad?"

Her parents flipped around at the voice, dropping their mugs as they did so," Nashi? Is that you?"

Lucy didn't need an answer. She flew at her daughter and wrapped her into a warm hug," Nashi Layla Dragneel, do you have any idea how worried we've been?!"

"I'm sorry, mom-"

"What were you doing this entire time? Hanging out with gangs? Trying to be independent?" Her daughter groaned; sometimes Lucy was so weird," If this was a lesson about me being a control freak, I think you went overboard!"

Nashi pulled herself away from her mom and rubbed her arm sheepishly," Ah, it's actually a funny story...you see, March and I went to Sabertooth to try and bargain some chocolate off of them, but we accidentally stayed to late. Sting, Rogue, and Yukino let us stay at their house, but all of us fourth generation dragon slayers had a very frightening dream about a demon child killing Lutz. So, I..went into my Fahrenheit rage and set off to find Ryos Redfox, 'cause he was in the dream too."

Natsu's eyes widened," Isn't he a murderous criminal?"

"Dad, let me finish! So anyways, we found Ryos and his friend, Detox, when they tried to kidnap Lutz and Onyx. I got really mad about that, so I fought the iron drago slayer and ended in a draw. After that, Ryos told us about a looming dragon attack, so we decided to help him. Then, I remembered what Ryos did back when I was 11 and passed out. When I woke up, he was talking about sacrificing himself to the dragon, and I couldn't let him do that, so I went and fought it myself-"

"YOU FOUGHT A DRAGON BY YOURSELF?" Natsu cried," Those things are dangerous! Are you hurt? Did you defeat it? What happened?"

Lucy frowned," Did it make your clothes vanish? Is that why you're in your pajamas?"

"Mom! What kind of dragon does that?! Why are you so weird? Never mind. Anyways, I got badly beaten by the dragon, and I would've died if Winter-"

"Please don't tell me you're talking about Fullbuster's kid."

Nashi huffed," That's it, I'm done! You two keep interrupting my story, so I'm going to bed! Goodnight-"

She turned around to stomp up the stairs, but was bombarded with hugs by her parents," We're glad you're safe, Nashi. We love you."

The pinkette smiled and hugged them back," I love you guys too."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! This turned out to be a really long chapter, but it wrapped up the first arc. The next chapter will introduce most of the current Fairy Tail guild members that you haven't met yet, and then there will be a short fluff chapter of sorts after that. Once those two are done, I'm going into the next arc, which I am titling the<em> Crimson Crow Arc<em>. That arc will introduce one of the member of the Nashi+Winter team, and I have already briefly mentioned her before, so see if you can guess who it is! Thanks for reading!**

**-uprisingdragon**


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